The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-08-28

footing the Santa Fe of copper and
brass and had a complement of Off
/ GERS with special duties assigned to
each of them. Meetings were held
/ regularly and plans laid for the fol-
/ lowing weeks work.
No two meetings were held at the
same place, each time different loca-
! ton being selected to avoid the pos
sibilities of suspicion being attached to
the presence Of the members of the
gang.
Though brass and copper have been
stolen in a desultory manner for years
and the depredations have cost the
railroad thousands of dollars, the
matter was not called to the atten-
/ ton of Special Agent German until
about a month ago.
To make away with the stolen junk
/ after it was secured was a matter of
/ considerable trouble TO the mem bers
/ of the gang a the junk dealers of the
4 city refused to handle it for them.
About four or five months ago, two
/ brothers by the name of Lieberman,
! dropped off in Topeka. and within a
few days opened a junk shop at ia
Kansas avenue, under the name Of
Sam Lieberman.
Since then he has handled all Of
the stolen junk for the thieves and at
the present time there are six indict-
ments charging Sam Lieberman with
receiving stolen property, and there
viii probably be more, as every mem
Der of the gang who confesses, impli-
Gates the junk dealer in his crimes.
A bill of sale of the junk shop shows
that it has been turned over to H. c.
Lindsey, who is the bondsman for
Lieberman in three of his cases where
the bonds aggregate S1.1G0. and Lie
! herman has 50 far managed to keep
out of jail
The story so far brought to light in
dicates that Lieberman. who is sup
posed to be a distant relative of Dick
ems celebrated character, Fagin, in
Oliver Twist, has followed closely in
the footsteps of this novel character.
As soon as he opened his place of
business in Topeka he is said to have
formed a sort Of a school for thieves
and educated them in the art of steal
ing.
His pupils were boys from seven
years of age up to half grown men
! and in several instances there We're
I men who have grown gray in the ser
4 vice of the railroad company. One Of
/ the men who was arrested a few weeks
! ago had been in the employ of the
company for more than quarter Of a
century and as age had inca pacitated
him for one position after another he
was changed until after he had
reached three score years, he was
made Watchman in the yards.
The mans record was clear as far as
| the company has been able to find out
I A-illl he Was tempted DN TINS modern
Fagin In the person Of Lieberman and
/ he was captured one morning, as he
was leaving the yards before daybreak
with sack of junk on his back.
He pleaded for mercy and as he told
! all that he knew of the workings of
the gang and in the light of his past
record, he was discharged from the
| company and was not prosecuted.
Changed His Plan.
After nights stealings Lieberman
!
/ by appointment at his place of bust
/ ness before daylight and pay them so
I much per pound for the junk stolen.
! This he would conceal about the
premises until such a time as he
could ship it to Kansas City where it
/ seemed to disappear.
After the sheriffs force and the
/ special agents of the company became
so active he changed his mode of
/ operations and furnished his band of
1 thieves with boxes and kegs in which
/ the stolen brass and copper was
/ packed and taken to the Union Pacific
/ depot where it was weighed and con-
| signed to "A. Harres" supposed to be
a fictitious character at Kansas CITY.
/ The bill of lading was then taken to
Lieberman who paid the thief for the
amount Of metal called for by the bill
! of lading
It has been said that there is honor
among thieves but this was dis
( proved to the satisfaction of Iieber-
man when he discovered among the
1 later shipments made to Kansas City
that several Of the kegs and boxes were
filled with bricks and old iron for
which he had paid the price copper
/ and brass as well as the freight to
/ Kansas City.
The value of the brass and copper
4 has not been the greatest loss to the
/ railroad, as engines We're disab Ied
coaches wrecked, and hundreds of dol
lars worth of damages done to the
equipment of the road. Sometimes the
value of the brass taken did not
amount to more than a few dollars,
while the damages done amounted to
I many times the value of the brass or
! copper.
While the ferreting out of the Grim
inals has been the work of the secret
department of the Santa Fe the eoun-
ty and city force have assisted in every
way possible.
The records of the nine men now
under arrest and in the county JaiI
with one exception show that thew
have either served penitentiary or jail
sentences or have been in the re-
formatory and some Of them have long
records OF sentences served, listed
against them The one exception is
Harry Streeter. the white man. and so
far as has been learned he has never
been arrested before
The arrest of the men now in 5ail
will probably break up a well organ
lied gang of junk thieves and as every
one of them has confessed it appears
to be but a question of a short time
until they viii land IN the penitentiary.
They admit that they have been guilty
of burglary, which under the inde-
terminate sentence law viii send them
to the penitenuary from one to seven
years.
Go TO New York on the LsehIgh.
Double Track Scenic highway. Con-
meets at Buffalo or Niagara Falls with