The San Francisco call., 1908-03-16


tant tribute to members of the police
department Biggy stated last night
-'sthatrthe present case is the first de-
velepment of a strenuous endeavor to
wire out this form of graft
Behan and Evatt were caught IN the
trap set for them Saturday night, and
without the loss Of a minute were dis
1lisse6 from the police department
Each had accepted a few hours before
a marked IS gold piece, handed them by
a lodging house keeper for protection
from interference. Witnesses saw the
money marked, watched as 1t was
passed to the two policemen and saw
them pocket It. and later the marked
pieces were found in their possession
when they were asked to place all their
money on the desk in Chief Biggyis
private office.
CASE Is CLEAR
The case is a clear one against
them, and the money was paid for the
avowed purpose Of protection That
injury was not necessarily an ~unlaw
fuI injury" however, though the means
employed were unlawful, and this is
what the supreme court had TO say in
its Schmitz case decision a week ago
concerning just such another act:
1t is very clear that to constitute
the crime of eXtortlon committed by
means Of any threat TO injure property
-
threatened, as was, in effect. said by
the learned district court, must be in
itself unlawful. irrespective of whether
Or not the purpose with which the
threat is made is, TO obtain money to
which the person threatening is not
- entitled"
The Indictment in the Schmitz case
was declared insufficient in that il
did not show that the specific injury
10 the property Of the restaurant keep
p. ers. threatened by the defendant was
an unlawful injury
After working for some time in a
Eain endeavOr TO secure conclusive evi-
dence in a certain case that had been
brought 10 their attention Chief of
Police Biggy and Police Commissioner
Isugo Keil determined Saturday morn
ing 10 take definite steps to set trap
for the policemen involved One 50
gold piece was marked with small
punch marks on each side of the
eagles neck and with punch marks on
each wing, while another was similarly
marked with a punch mark on the
cheek Of the goddess OF liberty and
with others at the sides Of her neck.
THE TRAP Is SET
Two men employed by the police de-
. partment. but not on the regular force,
took these coins TO the office Of Com
missioner Ken in the Flood building
and there delivered them in the pres
ence of Biggy and Keil to J. .. Samuel
son. proprietor of the Kearny house at
1l2 Kearny street, who had agreed to
pass the money.
receipt. containing a description of
the marked coins, was given by Sam
ueIson to Keil and left sealed in his
possession. Samuelson then left the
office and was shadowed by the two
men who had handed him the money
Policeman Behan, who had the beat on
kearny street from California TO
Broadway for the watch from o'clock
until midnight, fell victim to the trap
shortly after II o'clock and word was
at once telephoned to Biggy that one
Of the coins had been passed. Biggy
at once instructed Lieutenant Shea of
the central station TO stand guard
at the door Of the hall of justice and to
capture BehaR as he entered the build
ing. The instructions were carried out
and Behan was suddenly led into
Biggys Office without being given a
chance to go to his locker or remove
anything from his pockets.
Biggy Immediately told Behan that
he had received many reports of shake
downs practiced by policemen, and
asked the latter if he had any knowl-
edge of such deals. Behan denied this,
and in answer to another question said
that he had between $50 and 500 with
him when he left his home that after
noon Biggy asked him if he objected
to placing the money on the table in
front Of him, and Behan unsuspectingly
- did So The second coin which Biggy
picked UP was the 50 gold piece with
the disfgured goddess of liberty, which
had been given him by Samuelson.
Biggy accused Behan of having taken it
as protection money and showed him
the receipt for the coin, but in the
face of this evidence Behan still in
49, sisted that the money was his own.
At this point the telephone bell rang
and Biggy received information that
the second coin had been passed to
Policeman Evatt, who had succeeded
Behen on the Kearny street beat
Lieutenant Shea at once took Behan
into the office of Captain of Detectives
Kelly. and all lights in this Office and
in Biggys private office were put out.
cVATT Is NABBED
Biggy and Captain Kelly then hur-
2 Tied TO Kearny street and met Evatt
talking TO Policeman John Manion at
the corner of Broadway As a blind to
their real intentions Biggy and Kelly
took both policemen with them and
jumped into a hack at the corner of
Kearny and Jackson streets. The
blinds were pulled down and the cab
started of at gallop. When it
stopped and the two policemen sftnped
the hall Of justice in Eddy street
Manion was left outside, but. Evatt
was taken into Biggy's private Office
and a scene similar TO that of a short
while before was enacted. Evatt was
asked the same questions and made
- practically the same answers as given
by Behan. Then ne disgorged a S5
gold piece and about SO in silver on
Biggy's table. The gold piece was the
: second marked coin. Evatt denied his
guilt as Behan had done Then Behan
~ was brought in from the other Office
and both men were peremptorily sus-
and their stars taken from
them They We're told not to discuss
, the matter, and both of them refused
y yesterday to talk about It or make SO
much as a single admission
Biggy declares that the crusade has
just begun and that several other
charges are now before the police COM
missiong but none of these charges
either directly or Indirectly impIicate
the Chinatown squad. The corruption
complained of is confined Utmost exclu-
sively TO the central station district