Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-12-21
Armed With RevoIvers, Axes
and Rifles, Enraged Mill
town Residents Hunt Men.
NAB COUNTY SEAT MAN
Frank Voorhees, Held in Coun.
ty JaiI--NeW York Man Al
so Caught; Others Escape
BY STAFF Correspondent.
NEW BRUNSWICK, Dec. 21--

BY STAFF Correspondent.
NEW BRUNSWICK. Dec. 21--
Gaining an entrance into the vault
of the First National Bank, in Mill
town, shortly before midnight last
night by tearing down part OF the
brick walls of the rear end of the
bank building. robbers succeeded in
taking from the safety deposit boxes
liberty bonds. cash and valuables es-
timated at several thousand dollars.
Before the men, of which there ara
said to have been four, could get
away with their loot, however,
posse of residents in Midtown, who
had been gathered by Fritz Miller,
81 watchman at the Michelin Tire
Companys plant, swooped down
upon the burglars and nabbed two
men. Both the mon arrested are
fugitives from justice. have jail rec
ords and have been implicated in
any number of store robberies in this
part of the county. They have been
mentioned as suspects in the Me-
tuchen post Office robbery In which
$6.400 In stamps and cash was stolen
about two weeks ago. and the $2.400
robbery In the New Brunswick
Woolworth store recently.
A posse of thirty citizens armed
with revolvers, shotguns. picks.
axes, shovels, etc, rounded up by
Watchman Miller, captured two OF
the alleged robbers after a fight in
which scores of shots were fired.
The men arrested are:
John Gordon, alias Voorhees,,
twenty-sevcn years old. born and
raised in this city. and fugitive
from this county for one year, and
Walter j. Vessel. alias Watson and
Jackson. twenty-six years old. OF
Boston. Mass.
by tearing out bricks in the rear of
the building and gaining access to
the vault. Liberty bonds. bills and
silver were found outside of the
vault when the posse descended on
the bank and arrested the two
men. Two other men are
said to have escaped. The New
Brunswick police were notified
shortly after midnight, and the pros
ecutor's detectives were called out
short time later. Miller. watch-
man in the tire company plant
which is next door to the bank, de-
tected the men after they entered
the vault and Immediately went TO
town to gather a posse of citizens.
According to information receiv.
ed, the vault in the Milltown bank
is wired alf around. and in order to
get to the vault it Is necessary to
cut the wires, and by so doing the
burglar alarm Is turned on. 1t is
the theory of the police that the
men squirmed through the wires in
some way. and reached the vault.
1t is believed the men were ac-
quainted with the layout Of the
bank.
Gordon, alias Voorhees,, is said to
have been shot through his hat
when the posse descended upon the
bank, and Immediately dropped to
the ground claiming that he was
| shot. A doctor was called but found
| the bullet had gone through the
hat. After being taken to the county
! jail Voorhees, attempted to cover up
'ii identity. but County Detective
John Ferguson. who has known him
since boy. Immediately recognized
| him. Voorhees, is said to have been
the ringleader in the robberies
| In this city and Perth Amboy last
year. when Topper brothers in this
city and Rubenstein's in Perth Am
| boy were entered. A number of meii
connected with Voorhees, in these
cases never came to trial pending
the arrest of their leader.
County Detectives Ferd David and
John Ferguson were busy this morn
ing talking to Voorhees, in the coun-
ty Jail in the hope of securing in
formation on the other two men in
the case. and possibly information
regarding the mans connection with
other robberies in this county. Chief
of Police Michael O'Connell stated
this morning that Voorhees, had
made all sorts of trouble for the
police for several years. At the age
of seventeen he was sent to the New
Jersey reformatory at Railway for
breaking and entering. A little later
he joined the navy and then desert
ed, was sentenced to serve time on
prison ship at Norfolk. Va. He
escaped from the brig" and swan
ashore. but later finished his time.
tContinned on page 3)