The sun., 1919-08-21
BANDITS STEAL
$4,000 LOAD
Express Van Seized in Green
wich Village by Four Men
in Automobile.
DRIVER IS FOUND DAZED
His Helper Also Tells of Being
Thrown Over Wall Into
Central Park.
DRIVER Is FOUND DAZED


upon a man half sitting and half lying
on the sidewalk at Tenth avenue and
Forty street last night about
10:30 o'clock. He appeared to be
6azed, but after some questioning he
told the policeman his name was Maui
rice Griffin of 81 Commerce street, that
he was a driver for the American Rail
way Express Company and that earlier
in the evening he and a helper had
started with truck loaded with ninety
packages, afterward said to have a
value of $4,000, from the company's
depot in Twenty-sixth street, between
Sixth and Seventh avenues.
I'VE had two horse rig" said Grif
fin. "a big wagon, and we had big
load. We went down town. intending
to go by the way Of the Desbrosses
street ferry to the Pennsylvania sta
ton in Jersey City. At Watts and
Greenwich streets a touring car in
which four men were seated came
alongside our wagon, but l thought
nothing about 1t. But we had gone
but few yards. up Watts street when
three of the men jumped from the
automobile and climbed onto our rig.
They struck me in the head with
something. and then they dragged me
off the truck, across the street and
threw me into the automobile.
Thrown out Of Motor Car.
-
held my mouth shut while the others
kicked and beat me- One of them tried
to put something into my mouth. be-
leve 1t was poison. because it tasted
bad and burnt the roof of my mouth. I
was half dazed all the time, and every
once in a while one OF the men would
hit me on, the head. They finally got
uptown and threw me out of the auto
mobile.
''I guess they must have thrown me
out about where the policeman found
me. After hit the sidewalk / tried to
get to my feet and holler, but my head
hurt and was unable to do it."
About the same hour that Patrolman
Smith found Griffin. covered with blood
and dazed. sitting on the curb uptown,
a man walked into the Beach street
police station and told the police lieu
tenant on duty there that his name was
Harry McEwen of 1905 Third avenue
and that he was Grifrins helper on the
truck. According 10 detectives attached
to the station. McEwen told two or
three different versions of the attack
on himself and the driver, but the one
trst he told most frequently was that
Z man jumped onto the express wagon
at Watts and Greenwich streets and
flashed a light In his face.
THE light startled me so that fell
off the truck into the street." said Nc
Even. land the next thing I knew
was in an automobile with Griffin and
two or three men. They ran the ma
chine uptown to Central Park at Sixty
seventh street. where they threw Griffin
and myself over the wall into- the pal :"
story Somewhat Contradictory.
McEwen was unable to say now he
had got down to the Beach street sta
ton from Sixty-seventh street and Cen
tral Park West. On one occasion, while
telling his story he said that the men
who attacked them had knocked Grif-
fin off the wagon first. while the next
time he said that he had been thrown
to the ground. after which Griffin had
bAin dragged from his seat.
The police detained McEwen' at the
Beach street station, althouBh he was
not arrested. until they could have an
opportunity to question Griffin. Later
the police of the West Sixty-seventh
street station reported that they had
found an abandoned automobile with
two caps in the tonneau. These caps
were of the sort usually worn by drivers
of express wagons and their helpers.
Neither Griffin nor McEwen wore a cap
when found by the police.
Patrolman Smith took Griffin to the
station house for examination and Dr.
Paterson was called from Bellevue Hos
pital to attend him for the cut on his
head. The physician said that the driver
had possibly suffered a fracture of the
skull and sent him at once to the hos
pital.
Up to early this morning the police
had not been able to find any trace of
the express wagon or It's load of parcels.
Agents of the company said the value
of the parcels probably would reach as
high as $4,000. They were what are
called value parcels" that is. parcels
on which value had been placed by the
shippers.