Downtown building famed in Dillinger bank robbery goes on the market

Nov. 6, 2025

A historic downtown mixed-use building known as the site of a bank robbery by the John Dillinger gang  is for sale.

The Security Bank Building is at Ninth Street and Main Avenue and totals more than 38,000 square feet on 0.62 acres.

It’s listed for $7.25 million.

“It’s a hard corner downtown, a mixed-use historic property, and it has enough parking on the property to service the property,” listing agent Ryan Tysdal of Van Buskirk Cos. said. “It’s one of those properties downtown that does not require adjacent parking.”

The building is almost fully occupied and being offered for sale as an investment property.

Johnson, Janklow & Abdallah Law Firm occupies the first and second floors, while there are office tenants on the third floor, a Federal Public Defender district office on the fourth floor and two storefronts fronting Main Avenue.

There also are 13 loft apartments on the fifth and sixth floors.

“They have huge windows that overlook downtown with beautiful views,” Tysdal said.

Security National Bank in Sioux Falls was founded in 1890 and expanded into its new downtown building in the mid-1910s. The Security Bank Building was built between 1915 and 1916 and became the first steel-framed office building in South Dakota when it opened in 1917.

On March 6, 1934, six members of the Dillinger Gang, armed with Thompson submachine guns, stormed the bank building and robbed it of $46,000. George “Baby Face” Nelson fired on Hale Keith, one of the police officers who had responded to the robbery. He was seriously hurt but survived. Other police officers were captured by the gang when they responded, and 30 hostages were forced to surround the robbers as a human shield and walk them to their getaway car. It’s unknown if John Dillinger himself was actually in Sioux Falls. None of the stolen money was recovered.

Bullet holes still can be seen in the building, Tysdal said.

“You’re owning a piece of history,” he said. “Those are the types of people I see buy downtown properties. They’re romantic about downtown Sioux Falls, and it means something to them to own a piece of history in the city.”

Several prospective buyers have looked at the building, he added.

The investment group that owns it “just feel like it’s a good time (to sell),” Tysdal said. “There are a lot of investors looking for investment properties now and not a lot of options on the market. There’s a lot of capital looking to be placed, so we feel like it’s an ideal time because the building is nearly fully leased and there are a lot of people looking for investment opportunities.”

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