The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1908-02-14
Receptacle Disappears; Papers
Valued $4,000 in II.
SIeuths Take Up the Case But
They Are Much at Sea.
Theft Occurs in a Minneapolis
Business Building.


600, and personal property of Daniel c.
Hopkins, vice president of the Hopkins
Land Company, has disappeared from
his office in the Metropolitan Life In
surance building, Minneapolis. Mr..
Hopkins formerly lived at Madelia.
The Mill City police are trying to
solve the mystery and seem to be
baffled. They say the case is one of
the most difficult that the department
ever has attempted.
Mr.. Hopkins believes the bonds and
securities were stolen from his desk
Friday morning. The papers were lock-
ed in a safe deposit box, which was
left on NJ. Hopkins desk for mo-
ment while he stepped into rear
room. Since then the papers have not
been seen by their owner. Mr.. Hop
kins says he has absolutely no recol
lection as to whether the box still was
on the desk when he returned.
81 had the box of papers in my
office Thursday morning and Friday"
said Mr. Hopkins. 81 am not positive
whether / saw the deposit box after
Thursday or not. My mind seems to
be blank as to that. But Friday
obtained the box from the vault to
look over some mortgage securities
which were about due.
A friend, an honorable man engaged
in the loan and brokerage business,
was present with me at the time. It
it out of the question, of course, that
he took it.. l stepped for moment
into the rear office, and whether the
box was stolen then | do not know. |
have no recollection of seeing it after
that, and neither am | certain that it
was not there. 1 am completely be-
fuddled on that point. | believe
though, that sneak thief secured
it during my short absence. / had been
looking over the papers with friend
the day before, but he. is a highly
honorable man, and could not be sus-
pected.
May Have Been Sneak Thief.
Although the sneak thief theory
seems plausible, it has weak points.
In the first place the office occupied
by the Hopkins Land company is
completely exposed to the passerby
through the plate glass sidings which
would render any intruder observable
to the occupants of the surrounding
offices and any one in the corridors.
All of the offices in the Guaranty Loan
building are similarly constructed.
At the time the sneak thief is sup
posed to have entered the Hopkins
Land company office, Mr.. Hopkins and
his two partners, Edward Noonan and
w. j. White, were in the rear room
with him. The rear room is separated
from the front office only by heavy
pane of couded glass. The door be-
tween the offices was left open, and
# is believed that the shadow of a
sneak thief would have been easily
seen through the glass partition.
TO further discredit the sneak thief
theory, it would be almost impossible
for one to secure his booty and make
his escape down the elevators without
being apprehended by the elevator OPP
orators or the starter" who always
are on the alert for suspicious char
acters. and who saw nothing to arouse
their suspicious. The only other way
by which exit could be made from the
building is by way of the stairs, which
are in full view of all the Offices on
each floor, and lead directly to the
foot of the elevator shafts.
Left on His Desk.
The box containing the securities
was left by Mr.. Hopkins on the right
side of his desk, the desk being with
in three feet of the door. A man
with long arm could reach the box
without actually entering the room, OF
course. but even this could scarcely
have been done without attracting at
tention, it is argued.
The safe deposit box containing the
stocks and bonds have been kept in
Building Vault No. on the fifth floor,
in the east side corridor, near the Hop
kins Land companyS Office. inside the
large vault, tiers of iron safes belong
inc to tenants of the building are
stored, and in one of these Mr.. Hop
kins kept his securities. The main
vault is locked by a combination, and
is opened and closed only by the
ianitor of the building, Charles Swan
son. The opening hour is eight o'clock
and at $50 the vault is closed. Swan
son. an old and trusted empoye,
saws he knows of no one entering the
vault except owners of safes.
Mr.. Hopkins says that he has some-
times left his private safe with only a |
set lock, which could be readily open
ed. Whether he left it so Friday he |
does not know In fact, he does not |
remember that the box was ever
placed in the vault after he took
it to his office Friday morning. He
thinks it possible, though not prob
able, that he may have returned the
box to the vault and forgotten about