Los Angeles herald., 1892-05-22
A Notorious Safe Blower Run
to Earth Here.
Arrest of One of the Most Ex,
pert Cracksmen Living.
The Sheriff's Officers Corral
Famous Criminal.
Pat McDermott Alias Pat Lavine Alias
Pat Gibson Arrested on Main Street
for Dozen or More Safe
Robberfes.


Pat McDermott, alias Pat Lavine,
alias Pat F. Gibson, one of the most
celebrated and skillful safe blowers in
America, is now securely locked up in
the county Jail, and Sheriff Gibson,
Deputy Sheriff Russell and Detectice
Will Smith of the Southern Pacific de-
serve infinite credit for this important
capture.
Some months ago Sheriff Gibson got
wind of the fact that the numerous rob-
berries committed in this city and vicin-
ity where safes were blown were the
work of skilled eastern cracksman,
and acting on this information Deputy
Sheriff Russell and Detective Will
Smith have at last succeeded in rum
ming the offender to earth, and from the
number OF burglaries and safe blowing
exploits that McDermott has been en-
gagged in, he will probably spend the rest
of his natural life in prison. McDer.
mott was arrested on Main street q
few minutes after he had gone into
Walters jewelry store and sold some
broken pieces of gold which had formed
part of several watch cases. On one of
f, these fragments was the watch case
number of gold timepiece which was
taken out of the safe Of Mr.. Silver of
Wilmington, in addition to 500 in cash.
The safe OF Mr.. Silver was blown open
with dynamite, having first been bored
with hard steel drill and then charged.
The local safe robberies which have
been traced to McDermott as the perpe-
traitor begin with the blowing open of
the safe in Stolls's soda works on Com
mercial street, in which effort too much
powder was used. The next was the
safe blown at the Boyle Heights post
Office, where small amount of money
and stamps were secured. The safe in
the postoftice at Santa Monica was the
next one to succumb to the ingenuity OF
this eminent burglar, and he secured
about $4OO worth of postage stamps and
! $50 cash.
McDermott then changed the scene Of
his operations and took q trip out to
Anaheim where he blew open the safe
of a merchant named Watson securing
small amount of money, and likewise
blew open the safe of the Southern
Pacific ticket Office, securing $75 and
lot of tickets. Redlands was the next
point visited and here he managed to
bore and blow open the safe of Santa
Fe ticket Office and secured $3.50.
He was surprised here by the watch
man who fired at him while he
was making his retreat and shot him in
the leg near the knee but he managed
to get away. The two safes blown in
Santa Monica recently were also the
handiwork OF the industrious Nc
Demott.
After blowing open the safe OF Mr..
Silver at Wilmington McDermott stole
the horse and buggy of George Kinds
and got away with them.
When rrrested McDermott first gave
his name as Patrick f. Gibson, but
when pressed he finally admitted that
his name was Pat Levine, and later on
it was determined beyond doubt that
he was none other than the famous Pat
McDermott, the friend of "Sheeny
Mike" and of "Little Horace" both OF
whom are now doing time, the latter
being tied up in France for a $15O,0O0
job. McDermott has served terms
for big work in the Joliet
prison and in the Nebraska
pen. He is wanted in several sections
of the east, more particularly in Council
Bluffs, Iowa, where a reward of $500 is
now offered for his apprehension for
burglarizing a firm of $4,000. McDer-
motifs mug is in nearly every rogues
gallery in the country, and he is not
only skilled worker in the profes-
sion OF safe blowing, but is also
man of unusual intelligence,
and has been remarkably successful in
eluding the officers of the law in various
sections of the country, and his capture
will probably cause a cessation of the
numerous safe robberies which have
been reported in many sections OF South
ern California during the past six
months.