Los Angeles herald., 1892-06-01
NEATLY NABBED.
The Police Capture an Enter
prising Burglar.
A Thief Whose Closet Was Full Of
Overc0ats.
Good Work Of the Detective Depart
ment-Two More Burglaries SUM-
day Night-The Fellow who
Was Captured.

Was Captured.
The HERALD has given exclusively the
first news about the series of burglaries
which have been committed in the
western part of the city during the past
two weeks. These burglaries were an
astonishingly successful set Of crimes in
one way, and very bungling jobs in an
other. The burglars were successful in
entering no less than dozen houses in
the same neighborhood, and notwith-
standing the fact that the number oi
policemen in that section was increased
by several officers. But even in their
success the thieves refrained from avail
ing themselves Of the opportunities OF
securing large lot Of valuable silver
ware and other articles of value, al
though they encumbered themselves
with clothing and small articles, such
as opera glasses and the like,
It is now with great satisfaction that
q very clever piece OF detective work by
the department., but particularly by
Detective Benson, assisted by Detectives
Bosuui and Auble, can be chronicled.
Chief Glass has had one of the burglars
locked up in the city Jail since Monday
noon, when he was captured by Detec-
tives Benson and Bosqui on Lower Com
mercial street. The story of his detec-
tion and arrest furnish chapter in the
records of the department which can
always be looked back upon with pride
by those participating in it, for they not
only ferreted out slick criminal, but
recovered nearly every article that has
been stolen at all the houses entered.
Sunday an overcoat was found in q
secondhand store on Commercial street
which was identified by Mr.. Sampson
as belonging to him, and which had
been stolen from his house in one of the
burglaries. This was the first attempt
of the burglars to dispose of any of the
stolen goods. For several days Detec-
tive Benson had suspected the man cap.
tured yesterday, and he was shadowed
to his rooming place. Two more burg
laries took place Sunday night. One Of
them was at Mr.. Metzner's, who lives at
No. 12l4 South Hill street. Here the
same kind of a job was done as-at most
of the other places visited, and the burg
lars secured among other things large
magnifying glass and half a box Of
cigars. At the other place, next door,
they took nothing but something to eat.
An extraordinarily heavy fog pre-
vailed Sunday night, and the tracks Of
the burglars were very plain in the
ground around the houses entered.
There were four tracks. and they left in
many cases perfectly well defined shapes
of the shoes worn by the nocturnal Wis
itors.
Monday morning Detective Boequi was
standing near the corner of Commercial
and Los Angeles streets and he saw q
man coming up the street having on q
light overcoat and carrying bundle on
his arm. just then he saw Detective
Benson coming along behind the man.
When they met both expressed the
opinion that they had their man. He
went down Commercial street towards
Wilmington, and near the corner of the
latter street vieited secondhand store,
where he tried to sell the overcoat and a
pair of shoes. He went into one or two
other places to dispose of articles, and
was finally arrested and brought to the
police station shortly after noon.
On his person were found several OF
the stolen articles which had been de-
scribed by their owners, including opera
glasses, two or three watches, small
piece Of wax candle and pieces of tai
low candles.
The prisoner was young man about
20 or 27 years of age, and neatly dressed.
said he was q native of Bohemia, but
declined to say where he had recently
come from or anything about himself.
He was taken down to the room which
Detective Benson had located as his
rooming place. The landlady was asked
if he had a room there. He spoke up
and said he had not, but she said she
would not lie about it; that he had. He
was then brought up to the station and
locked up.
officers went to the room, where
nearly every article stolen in the nu.
merous burglaries was found. In the
closet elk overcoats were found and
easily identified. In the bureau mum.
ber Of stolen articles were found. All
the plunder was brought to the station.
The shoes of the prisoner fitted ex.
actly the measurement of the tracks ol
one of the burglars at Mr.. Metzner's.
A slouch hat was found in bureau
drawer, and the lining was 30 arranged
that it could be let down over the face
as q sort of mask, there being hole
cut in it for the nose and mouth
In the outside breast pocket of coat
which had been worn by the fellow q
small piece of broken window glass was
found, which had evidently dropped
into it when he was working on the win.
dow of Mr.. Hege's residence on South
Pearl etreet. It was slightly smoked
and was one of the fragments which fell
from the pane of glass when the burglar
cracked it.
There were two burglars who worked
together in the crimes committed, but
it is very plain that the prisoners pal
has become suspicious and got away
from the city as rapidly as possible. The
police have been ransacking every nook
and Granny of the city to discover traces
of him, but he has, it is thought, got
clear away.
R> Xf2M E <M