He was an inmate with Dick Hickock in the Kansas State Penitentiary who originally gave Dick the idea to rob the Clutter family because he used to work there. Then, Floyd educated Dick about the layout of the Clutters' house and told him that the Clutters kept a safe that contained ten thousand dollars. Because of this Dick and Perry staged a robbery promising not to spare any witnesses and Floyd was the reason they were captured as Floyd snitched on them. However, Floyd also wanted to achieve the American dream which landed him in prison. He stole a lawn mower in an attempt to start a lawn care business to establish himself and start his own business. Unfortunately the law punished him for theft and took away his dream of starting a business