Watchman Edward Bell succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained two days earlier in Kansas City, Missouri. Watchman Bell was patrolling the switch yards on the Missouri side of the Missouri Pacific bridge over the Kansas River when he was attacked by two subjects and shot in the abdomen. Another watchman who was in the yards shot and wounded one of the subjects.

Watchman Bell was transported to St. Mary's Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, where he succumbed to his injuries two days later. He was a ten-year veteran of the Missouri Pacific Railroad Police.

Both men were arrested and charged with Watchman Bell's murder. One of the subjects was convicted of second degree murder. The outcome of the trial for the second subject is not known.

Watchman Bell was survived by his wife. Interred: Mount Saint Mary's Cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri.