New Britain herald., 1916-04-15
DARING THIEF GRABS $3,O9O AND ESCAPES
Woman With Factory Payroll Robbed in Broad Daylight

most daring daylight robberies ever carried out here occurerd shotly after 2 o'clock yesterday afternoon when @ - young man accosted Miss Frences I. Martin of Al Pearl street as she was ascending the steps of the Pfeghar Hardware Speciality Co.'S factory on Winchester avenue with the pay roll consisting of s3,O90 and, after a mo- ment of unsuspicious questioning, snatched the bag containing the mon- ey from her and made good his es- cape.
 The detective bureau was immediate ly notified and the entire city was carefully searched for the man but no clues to his whereabouts had been dis covered last night. However, the bag, cut and empty, was found on Hlll- house avenue near the Colony club, later in the evening by on employe or the Tester E1ctric Co. of P1tkln street as he was returning to the office. It was returned to the president Of the Pfeghar Co.,, H. W. Iblehauser.
 Miss Martin for the past eight years nas gone to the Yale National bank on Friday afternoons for the payroll of the company and never before mas she experienced any trouble in delivering it safely to the business office of the factory.
 AS Miss Martin ascended the main stairs to the company's plant, she mo- ticed a man trying the front door to the factory. This is always locked during working hours to keep out ln- truders and he could not, therefore. gain admittance. When Miss Mar tin came up the stairs, which also lead 10 f1Q aer if he could talk to the superin- tendent He said he was looking for work and he wanted to see some one in authority.
 Suddenly Snatches Bag.
 She told him that no new hands were being employed. Then without warning he reached out and with a quick downward motion of his hand seized the bag and It's contents, dash ed to the end of the building and dis appeared along the railroad tracks.
 Miss Martin, frightened and bit hysterical, ran into the office and be- fore she was able to tell what had happened she tainted. It was several minutes before she could be revived sufficiently to give the alarm that sne had been robbed.
 The detective bureau was notified and an auto was pressed into service 1 and Detective Sergeant Healy with 1 Detectives Lawler and Gianelli hasten 1 ed to the scene of the hold up.
 They found foot prints along the | track but could not follow the trail.
 In the meantime a second automo- bile, Chauffeur Ryan at the wheel, l carrying Detective Segeants Ward | and Moore and Detective Deskin l started out from headquarters.
 whitneyville, Centerville, Hamden and the woods intervening, the Derby turnpike and the Milford turnpike were thoroughly searched, but no l trace of the robber was discovered.
 A general description of a young l man about "A; about feet inches tall, weighing around 15O pounds, | dressed in a blue suit and soft nat was furnished to the police all over l man was kept.
 The clues left behind are sufficient, l in the opinion of the police, to lead | tt, the ultimate capture of the man. 1 The recovered money bag was cut, i showing plainly that the thief, in his i eagerness to get at the roll of bills l had not stopped to open it in the l proper way, but had slit the side with q kife. The finding of the bag on | BilIhouse avenue indicated that the l thief had doubled back into the city l instead of trying to get away by a l straight break for the outskirts.
 Saw Man Hanging About
 An employe of the factory reported l having seen a man lurking about the i fo o%o -l, blo occurred. This man, he declared, 1 was 8 former employe who had re- gently been released from serving a l term in states prison. Such a per son would probably be acquainted with the time and conditions of