Roll of Honor
John Van Waters
Incident
Federal Prohibition Agent John Waters and Constable Arthur Crenshaw, of the Pasco County Sheriff's Office, were shot and killed in Pasco County, Florida while investigating illegal stills. They were shot from ambush as they sat in their car. Six men, five of them brothers, were arrested and charged with both murders. All were tried, but none were convicted. One was shot and killed on February 24, 1925, by officers who were raiding a liquor still near the same place where Agent Waters and Constable Crenshaw were killed. Agent Waters had served with the United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Prohibition Unit for one month and as a U.S. Marshal for eight years. He was survived by his wife and five children. He is buried in Williams Cemetery, Dade City, Pasco County, Florida.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and five children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-FED-DF05F86A- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Federal Prohibition Agent Waters gave the United States Department of the Treasury 8 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Federal Prohibition Agent Waters.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Federal Prohibition Agent John Van Waters is one of 17,623 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 54.2% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In DC, 754 of 1,419 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 53.1% of this state's fallen. That is 1.1 percentage points below the national rate of 54.2%.
At United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Prohibition Unit, 47 of 59 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 79.7% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John Van Waters's cause is highlighted.
How John Van Waters Compares
Offender Outcome
Apprehended
When Felonious Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. John Van Waters is highlighted in Oct.
Weapons Used Against Officers
Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. John Van Waters was killed by shotgun.
Others Who Wore This Badge
58 officers from United States Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service - Prohibition Unit are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
