The sun., 1910-09-04
LETTER Box THIEVES CAUGHT
JtTk uOOD avn PaT. GEORGE
IOg va. TRtPPED



'svsaa CR~~ks sSa I.s'tsrs IN tabs
Psss~--'oa Nabs-d IN a~t sf stsaIIns.
The mystery - the uhole-al~ robbery
~ letter hoN~~ IN the Corona part ~ Long
Island city bstw-~h August ~ and Au-
gust 25. during Which time a arore -
boxes we're riH~i and many vahiahls
letters and checks stolen. was sulv-,l
Yesterday whsn Jack Mood. known to
N" po-t once inspectors and the Pink"r-
tons a. one - The most expert mail bnN
thieves IN the country confessed before
United states Csmmls.ion-r Bsn~,lict
in Brooklyn "a having a letter box key
known technically a. forged key ia
his possession that would NJ any buN IN
Long Island city.
~ the same time a man calling himself
George Young who had been arrested
with Mood while robbing a box on Fri
day night also plead~Si guilty and was
held for trial for robbing mail l'ox
Young said that he had never been IN
such business before. aud Mood said that
h" first met Young ON the Bowery only
few days ago. Mood may get ten years
imprisnnm~nt for having the bogus
key in his possession The penalty for
rObbing a letter box i- only ave years
The arrest - Mood who gave his name
az John Wilson, was a source ~ unusual
qualification to Chief Inspector W ".
Dixon and Post Once Inspectors Jacobs
and James. who helped 60 catch him.
while he was az large Mood has only
one superior a. letter box thief and
that man ~ charles Fisher. who il in
Sing Sing
Inspector Jacobs. who has kept track
Of both Fisher and Mood for years. said
yesterday that Mood ~ Fishers re~idiIaTy
legates ia the mail box robbing business
and that among the tools of the trade
that d.scended to Mood when Fisher
went 20 Sing Sing was the letter box key
good anywhere IN Long Island city.
She inspector learned that the key was
made by break ing open a letter box a
few months ago and taking a wax inn
preston ~ the luck
The inspector was a hit pain~d TO find
that Mood was at the bottom % the recent
Long Island City robberies. becaua.
Mood had called on the inspector two
months ago and told such q straight
forward story Of reformation that In
speCtor Jacobs let him have q dollar
The Inspector got a further shock yeeter-
dAy afternoon when he went 90 Moods
room a. S Batavia street with the Pink
OrtOns aud found two two pound pack
ages of gunpowder and forty feet Of fuse
chief Inspector Dixon began To hear
about the mail box robbeiea In Corona soon
after August - On August - Pisani Bros
importers Of marble ONYX and mosaic
plaques az the foot % Mills street Astoria.
reported that three checks put IN the
mail boX a. tho boulevard and Fulton
81 rect had faiI.-J To reach their destina-
ton Altogether a score Of letters mailed
hv th.. Il rm had been taken when the letter
hoX was hfed but there were only three
checks for a total of 81. so
Pi-ani Bros keep their account In the
Mechanics and Metals National Bank at
IS Wall street and were sending the thres.
checks for deposit One was a cashiers
check for 81 90 aud Was drawn Oh the
Italian. American Bank of San Francisco
and payable az the National Park Bank
IN New York A second check, for tsS.
was Government check drawn 10y
William I.c-b tr Collector ot Customs.
70 th. PiSani firm for an overpayment
Tuch Bros paint dealers ia Long Island
city. r-yor'.d at about the same time that
box ia which the firm had mailed letters
AZ Jamaica and Steiuway avsuu.s had
been empti.i and three checks drawn
on IA. Long Island city branch u the
Corn ENchaug. Bank were stolsn. Will
lam stewart a lawyer at 27O jackson
avenue. Long Island city also reported
that he had ma led two checks 10 the Law
firm 81 Holm. Whitlock \ Scarh at SO
NASSAU street which never arrived
The Corn Exchange and Mechanics
and Metals banks took action independent
uf th. poet Office inspectors, They are
members Of the Pinkerton Rank and
Bankers Protection. under which name
the Pinkerton- now run down bank
thieves The Pinkertons went g. work
on tl. cas-. about a week ago
The first thing the PinkertonS did was
To- look up Mood. who was known Co have
been In this nei eighh"rhrDd
For several nights prior 20 Thursday
Mood was trailed by detectives. and he
always had the man giving his name as
George Young with him The detectives
didn't feel that they were getting far until
Thursday night. when they were following
Mood and Young along the Fast S,de river
front IN Manhattan.
As Mood and Young passed a was's
paper box at South and Catherine streets
late that night the detectives saw Mood
tear up something into bits and throw Il
into the box The wind blew some %
the pieces away. but most of them re-
nained The detectives stopped az the
boz long enough To pick mp all the pieces
in sight and then trailed Mood to his
home near by at 5 Batavia street.
One man was loft On guard and the others
went 90 the PinkertOn ONCE 60 put the
torn PARTICLES of paper together There
were enough left ~ them TO show that they
had been the 81 OO check on the San
Francisco bank and the Government
check drawn by Collector Loeb. Then
the detectives knew they had their man.
9a.aN -