On the night of March 5, 1917, Sheriff Wheeler and Deputy Gibson were returning to the latter's home at Gleeson in an Oldsmobile Touring Car after a day of searching the Chiricahua Mountains for smugglers. But, because they were exhausted and could not safely drive in the dark, at sunset the two lawmen decided to stop and make camp for the night. The location was about two miles east of Gleeson, along the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks. However, not long after they had rolled out their blankets and laid down next to the car, a salvo of fire came in from some Mexican outlaws positioned behind some rocks about 200 yards away from the railroad tracks. The first shot smashed the front window out of the car.