The sun., 1919-05-28
BOY WHO TOLD OF
ROBBERY ARRESTED
Messenger Pushed Into Hall
way and Assaulted, He
Told Police.
LIBERTY BONDS STOLEN
Police Search City for Securi-
ties Valued at
$4,000.

Dennis Forrest. IS years old, was ar
rested at II o'clock last night and
locked up in Police Headquarters on a
charge Of grand larceny in the theft
OF s2s.ooo in Liberty bonds, which he
had been sent to deliver to another firm
by his employers. Hartshorne & Bat
telle of rs Broad street. and which he
told the police had been stoienl from him
by two men. who dragged him into a
doorway and beat him with the butt OF a
revolver.
At 2 o'clock this morning Detectives
Mayer. Brown and O'Neill arrested
Frank b. Coakley. FL. OF 107 West 126th
street, and locked him up, charged with
completely in the robbery. Young
Coakley was arrested at Eighth avenue
and Fifteenth street, after he had been
pointed out by Forrest
Young Forrest, who was questioned
by Second Deputy Police Commissioner
Lahey at the Old slip station house and
later at Police Headquarters, told the
Deputy Commissioner and the detectives
that about l o'clock yesterday afternoon
three men held him up at the point OF
revolvers In front OF the Pine street
entrance OF the Astor building, which
Pine street. The men backed him into
the entrance of Pine street, said the
messenger, and after Telling him with
blows from the butts of their revolvers
grabbed the satchel lied with Liberty
bonds and escaped in the direction of
" lillian street.
The entrance to the building which
Forrest described as the scene of the
holdup is but 500 feet or less from the
Sub Treasury and therefore In the YER,
heart OF the Wall Street financial
activities.
In the stolen satchel, said Forrest
were 422 Liberty bonds in issues Of $50
and 500. These, he said, he had been
directed by Hartshorne q Battelie tc
take to the Federal Reserve Bank Offices
on the twenty-fourth floor of the Equit.
able building to have them converted
into rs bonds Of 81 900 each.
He started north on Broad street
Forrest told the police, and into Nassay
street for a block and then turned west
in Pine street. About a third of tht
distance up Pine street from NASSAU
street. Forrest continued. or in front OF
No 3. the three men suddenly closed ir
| on him and forced him into the hall.
way. The corridor OF No. . makes q
sharp turn a few feet within the lobby
therefore making II Impossible Tor int
elevator starter in the middle OF tn,
long corridor to see what goes on at the
Pine street entrance to the building.
Two of the holdup men. said Forrest
beat him about the head and face until
he was dazed with blood and pain. the
third man at the same time Juggling al
the satchel. Forrest says he had to re-
linquish his hold on the satchel at last
whereupon the three men disappeared
| with their loot. Forests employers, as
| soon as their messenger had reported
the loss of the bonds. notified the Fed.
eral Reserve Bank and the numbers Of
the missing bonds were sent out broad
cast in an effort to prevent the con-
version of the bonds into cash.
When the police finally learned OF tn,
holdup. there was much activity a
Headquarters and at the Old Slip sta
ton house. Deputy Commissioner La
hey and half a dozen Headquarters mer
Immediately hurried down to the OK
Slip station house. where Forrest told
again the whole story of being held up
Later he was questioned further at Pc.
lice Headquarters. During the rest OF
the afternoon and last night the detec'
tives were searching the city in an effor'
to get some trace OF the three holduI
men whom Forrest had described as well
he said, as he could remember them un.
der the exciting circumstances.