Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1920-12-09
YOUTHS SENTENCED TO PRISON
Trio of Council Bluffs Mail Robbers
Given Long Terms in the
Penitentiary,

Fred Poffenbarger, 10, and Or
vile Phillips, II, characterized by
United States Attorney e. G. Moone
as the prime movers" in the Coun-
Gil Bluffs mail car robbery, entered
pleas of guilty before Federal Judge
| Wade in Des Moines at 4 p. m. Mon
day.
Poffenbarger and Phillips after
Fort Leavenworth prison for eigh-
| teen years. Phillips received a thir-
| teen year sentence.
Poffenbarger and Phillips after
expressing a desire to plead guilty,
were indicted by the grand jury as
being the two men who sctually
stole nine mail bags from a Burling-
ton car. They admitted entering
the car and throwing out the sacks,
! the majority of which were carried
away in an automobile driven by
| Keith Collins, recently sentenced to
prison for fifteen years.
]. j. Hess of Council Bluffs, APP
peared as counsel for the two lads
and told the court that they did not
realize the enormity of the crime.
Mr.. and Mrs. Bert Phillips, par
ents of Orville Phillips, and their
|
when the youthful bandits were SEN
fenced. Neither Poffenbarger nor
Phillips, who appeared to be any
thing but bold robbers, had any re-
marks to make when brought before
the court. They did not seem to
realize that they were facing years
in prison. O.
Explaining the case against the
lads, United States Attorney Moone
said:
"These boys, the evidence indi-
Gates, were the prime movers in
planning the robbery. They are the
parties who actually took the mail
sacks out of the cars, five of the
bags were dumped into car diven
| by Keith Collins and the other four
bags were taken by Poffenbarger to
his fathers home. Poffenbarger
subsequently met Collins and they
: divided $4,000 in cash"
Counsel Hess, speaking in behalf
of the two youths, said:
81 do not believe the lads realized
what they were doing. The crime
was committed Saturday evening
and Poffenbarger made no attempt
| to leave Council Bluffs, spending
! his time in moving the contents OF
| the mail bags from place to place.
"Orville Phillips did not attempt
! to get away. On the Wednesday
following the crime and after his
brother Merle had been arrested, he
came to my office and stated his
| brother Merle had been arrested, he
| said that he was the one that COM
mitted the crime. Thereupon / ask
ed Postoffice Inspector Glenn, or
/ Council Bluffs, to come TO my office
and we went to the place where the
| bags were concealed.
"Orville told a Straightforward
story to postal authorities and was
great aid to them in clearing up
the robbery"
In sentencing the youths Judge
Wade said:
at is legitimate ending for boys
starting such a career-boys who
, have been rebels since childhood. A
man can hardly realize what boys
can do until confronted day after
day with the crimes they have COM
mitted. The philosophy of life of
getting something without working
has got to stop. / wish the Sunday
| schools would set a week apart for
/ teaching the young men of this
! country the ten commandments, and
l would like to see an extra week
! given to the commandment Thou
shall not steal The trolble nova
days is to get young men to take
life seriously. They must be taught
that movies, bright lights and idle
ness are not everything"