The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1920-11-09
AUTO THEFT GANG
ARE ARRESTED
ARREST OF THREE MEN MAY
SOLVE DISAPPEARANCE Hun
DREDS CARS IN MINNESOTA.
DAKOTAS.

St. Paul, Nov. "a far reaching
| automobile theft ring that has been
| preying on motorists of st. Paul
| Minneapolis, Aberdeen, Sioux Falls
and other leading cities of Mime
sofa and the Dakotas for more than
| six months, was brought TO light here
! Saturday. according TO St. Paul police
with the arrest of three men who
| claim St. Paul as their home.
| The arrest of Mike Nelsonovitch.
| alias Nike Webster, Snakes Filing
ston and Charles Palmer, NAV solve
| the disappearance of hundreds of mo-
| tor cars from cities and towns of Min
| nesota, North and South Dakota
within the past half-year, police as
| serted
When Nelsonovitch was arrested
late Saturday, in Fourth street gar
age, where he was attempting to dis
| pose of a stolen Ford sedan, police
| detectives found in his possession
fake" bill of sale, made out to cor
respond in every way with the ma
chine in question. signed by an imag-
mary notary public and purporting to
show that he had purchased the car
two months ago from a man in Sioux
Falls.
The engine and chassis numbers on
the car had been carefully erased by
| instruments found in a kit which the
man was carrying. and new numbers
| substituted with a set of dies. which
1 1,
Several sets of license numbers from
| the states of Minnesota, North and
| South Dakota, which could have been
| substituted at a moments notice for
| the original. were also contained in
the grip.
The extent of the pains taken by
| Nelsonovitch to cover his movements
was disclosed. police said, by numer-
! Gus maps of various portions of Min
nesota, North and South Dakota, one
| which had been marked off in indel-
ible pencil. routes leading to and
| from different towns, which would
prove safest, and which provided Sc
cIuded spots, in which refuge could
be found in case of emergency, ac-
cording TO the police. The hiding
places were also pointed out on the
maps, il was declared.
The arrest of Ellington and Pal
mer, alleged accomplices of Nelson
ovitch, came about after they had
stolen a spare tire from the automo-
bile of E. A Gilbertson, 2T16 Hum
l boldt avenue south, Minneapolis.
Headquarters was informed short
| ly after 9 p. m, that taxicab be-
| lonfing to a well known St. Paul taxi
line but displaying no number, stop
/ ped midway between Seventh and
| Eighth streets on St. Peter street.
| about S:45 p. m, and two men got
out. Both walked to the automobile
| of Mr.. GiIbertson and after cutting
| loose the spare tire from the rear end
of the machine, signalled the driver
TO approach. As the cab went past
the tire was thrown into its tonneau
and both men jumped in the car.
! With no apparently tangible clue
to work with, detectives ferreted out
the cab from the hundreds of others
of it's kind that operate on st. Paul
| streets, traced down it's occupants,
1 and late Saturday brought in Filing
ton and Palmer, whom they caught
selling the $40 casing to Rudy Lein-
er. a former saloonkeeper, for $50.
/ Charges of grand larceny have
been placed against all three men and
they are being held at central station
for further investigation. A search
was begun today for accomplices who
acted as outlying agencies, directing
numerous stolen cars to the twin CT
ties for sale in the illegal traffic
which the police say was carried On
with all the system and fineness char
acteristic of large business house.
All members of the ring 1t was de-
cIared. were so thoroughly versed in
the practices of the stolen auto traf-
fic that machines were transformed
within one or two hours to such an
/ extent that they were unacceptable
and could not possibly have been
identified as stolen cars.
Extreme caution covered the rings
movements and though police have
been aware of its existence for some
time, it has been impossible until now
to apprehend any of its members, the
police said.