New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-04-10
Ex-Clerk Held
For $275,O00
Biltnore Theft
Pearls Offered to Jeweler
Lead to Arrest in Mys-
terious Loss of Gems
From Strongbox of Hotel

From Strongbox of Hote
Detectives who arrested James +,
Foyc yesterday are confident that they
nave the man who stole jewels valued
at S215,OO0 from safe deposit box al
the Hotel Bltmore, but they have ne
more idea how the feat was accom-
pllshed than they had on June 13, 1919
when it was discovered that the Jewels
were missing. About $25 900 worth OF
the jewels, which belonged to Mrs
Clarence Millhiser, of Richmond. Va.
are said to have been recovered.
toye, who says he is an accountan
living at 81 St. Johns Place, Brooklyn
was room clerk at the Biltmore al
the time of the theft. About yea,
before that he had been an inmate OF
the Eastern Penitentiary in Pennsyl-
vania, serving time for forgery which
gave him possession of 100000 worth
of securities. He was arrested by De
tectives Gegan, Mccoy, O'Hara and
Herman. A reward of $4,000 was
offered for the recovery Of the jewels
Jeweler Tips Off" Police
On Thursday jeweler in the thea
ter district called up Police Head
quarters and said that q man then
in front of his counter had offered
for sale nine pearls valued at $25, 900
which, the jeweler believed, were some
Of valuable string stolen from the
Biltmore. Gegan instructed him to
offer the man $4,000 on condition that
examination verified his first impress
sion of the jewels and to be sure to
tell him to call the next day for his
check
Gegan and Mccoy were in the shop
yesterday afternoon when a man with
rather a fastidious taste in dress en-
tered and the jeweler nodded almost
imperceptbly. The man was Foye, the
detectives say, and he pocketed the
jewelers. check and walked out Gegar
and Mccoy were close behind him and
were Joined in the street by their fel-
low detectives. They followed him to
bank in lower Manhattan and arrested
him Is he was abount to enter
They took their prisoner to Head
quarters, where charge of grand lar
ceny was made against him. When he
had been booked, Gegan told the pris-
oner that he had recognized him the
first time he saw him behind the desk
at the Biltmore
Come here and III show you," said
Gegan.
The detective flung open one of the
album leaves in the rogues' gallery
and laid his finger on photograph. Ac-
cordlng to the detective, the prisoner
admitted at once that it was his pic
ture and that he was the James E. Foye
who had been sentenced to the Eastern
Penitentlary for a 100000 forgery.
Stock Forgery Revealed
1t was in 1913 that the forgery was
committed. Foye at that time was
employed at S1S week by a bank
which was fiduciary agent for several
corporations whose stock is listed on
the exchange. Foye, who had done
business for while on the floor OF
the Consolidated, was familiar with
the properties of stock certificates, and
when he came across block of them,
none of which had been stamped as to
the number of shares each represented,
no just filled them out for comfortable
amounts and obtained 100000 on them
from the banking firm of Charles T.
Brown & Co., of Philadelphia.
He was arrested on the eve of his
departure for France. but not before
he had turned over $4,000 to his wife
and 21,00O to a Mrs Elizabeth Austin.
Before the expiration of his term Foye
was paroled on his assertion that he
could recover the money he had given
to Mrs: Austin, most of the rest al
ready having been recovered
Although Foye admitted his identity
o. ho
fused to have anything to say about
the jewel theft. While he was being
arralgned at Headquarters his fingers
were busy tearing into tiny bits a piece
of paper which he took from his
pocket. Then they carefully gathered
up every piece of paper and were busy
last night trying to piece them to-
gether.
Wealthy Families Listed
Another puzzle which Fove's pockets
yielded is small black memorandum
book, almost filled with the names and
addresses of some of the wealthest
residents of Manhattan. The detec-
tives said that the "Astors. Rockefel-
lers and Goulds' were among those
listed in Foye's book.
The mystery in which the police take
the keenest interest, however. is the
manner in which Mrs. Mlllhiser's Jewels
vanished from the safe deposit box at
the Bltmore. She placed them in the
box May 20, 1918. June 13, when she
unlocked the box in the presence of a
hotel employee, the jewels were gone
The safe deposit boxes at the hotel
were regarded as completely beyond
the reach of thieyes. No fewer than six
men. one of them an armed watchman
were within sight of the boxes day and
night. it was said. Neither the custo-
dian nor the depositor could open the
box alone. the keys Of both being re-
quired to take out the box and open it.
= The records showed that all the for
malities had been com piled with in the
deposit and withdrawal of Mrs. Mill
hiser1 box 1t was impossible, the hotel
mansA Aement declared as tactfully as
possible, that the box conld havo bean
15ded.