DALLAS -- John Will Fritz, who headed the Dallas police inquiry into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, died Thursday following a brief illness. He was 87.
Fritz, who retired in 1970, was known nationally for his prowess as an investigator of violent crimes and as an expert interrogator.
His best known investigation, however, never came to trial.
He headed the inquiry into the Nov. 22, 1963, assassination of Kennedy and interrogated suspect Lee Harvey Oswald.
Oswald was gunned down by nightclub owner Jack Ruby as police escorted him through a parking garage two days after his arrest.
'That particularly hurt him, because he had built a great case against him,' said Dallas County Sheriff's Capt. Gus Rose, who worked on Fritz's staff for nine years.
Fritz was born June 15, 1896, in Dublin, Texas, and was raised on his parents' ranch in New Mexico. He served a brief stint in the Army during World War I and joined the Dallas police in 1921 as a beat officer.
By 1934, he had risen to captain and was organizing the department's robbery-homicide division. He retired in 1970 after 49 years' service.
'He was the best, the very best of his kind,' said retired Texas Ranger Capt. Jay Banks, who worked with Fritz on numerous cases.
Funeral was set for 4 p.m. CST Monday at Restland Funeral Home in Dallas.
Survivors include his wife, Faye; a daughter, a brother, six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
