New-York tribune., 1920-03-15
Huge. Gaming
Outfit Seized
In Nassau Raid
Two Occupants and Care
taker of Luxuriouslv
Furnished Cottage at
East Rockaway Arrested

Gambling paraphernalia said to be
worth $4,000 was seized yesterday in
a raid by Nassau County officials in a
luxuriously furnished cottage at 20
Waverly Avenue, East Rockaway The
house, according to Elvin N. Edwards.
Assistant District Attorney. of Nassau
County, VINO directed the raid. is the
property Of Arnold Rothstein, we'll
known in Broadway sporting circles.
The raiders, led by Mr. Edwards,
Sheriff Charles w. Smith and County
Detective Carman Plant, surrounded
the house shortly after midnight, and,
although they had exercised the Ut
most care in making their plans, i. IS
their belief that there was a "leak"
and the occupants were tipped" off in
time to escape.
After being kept waiting outside
for some time. the raiders we're ad
mitted by a polite negro, who gave
his name as William Williams and
said ne was the caretaker He de-
clared the house had been unoccupied
for some time. but the police say there
was every indication that lively
party recently had been in progress
there. Poker tables with cards and
ch'ps on them were found in several
OF the rooms and there was one large
table IN the center OF the Handsomely
furnished living room which caused
Prosecutor Edwards and his aids 10
believe that q roulette game had been
going on, although the wheel itself
vas missing.
Roulette Wheel in Dog House
Detective Plant searched the house
in vain for the wheel and then d.
rected his attention to the premises
outside. The barking of dog in a
yard next door caused him to look
over fence that separated the two
F!aces and there. partly concealed n
the dog house. he found the roulette
wheel. The detective believes the oc-
cupants Of the Waverly Avenue house
threw the wheel there while they were
fleeing.
Two men, who said they were Will
lam u. Thompson and Thomas Brown,
both of 26S West eighth Street,
New York, were arrested with Will
ians and taken to Mincola, where they
were held in $1,000 bail each by Judge
Edward T. Neu. They will be given a
hearing next Saturday. Bail was az
ranged for the prisoners following q
telephone conversation one of them had
with a person in New York At i
o'clock Yesterday morning the National
Surety Company provided bonds
II addition to the roulette wheel and
other gambling paraphernalia, a large
safe was removed from the house and
will be opened to- day. All the captured
material was loaded into moving van
and taken to Police Headquarters at
Mineola.
House Elaborately Furnished
Thompson and Brown explained their
presence in the house by saying they
we're spending the week end there
Brown told Prosecutor Edwards the
place was owned by Rothstein.
The raiders described the Waverly
Avenue cottage as The most deliberately
equipped gambling house ever discov-
cred in Nassau County, being far more
richly furnished than the one that was
raided in Lynbrook last summer. The
walls, according to the police, were
hung with splendid oil paintings and
the floors carpeted with imported rugs.
The windows were curtained in such
way that while the entire house was
brilliantly Illuminated inside when the
raiding party entered not ray of light
was visible from the outside.