Omaha daily bee., 1920-07-18
Seven Men, Including Three
Watchmen, Are Now Held as
Leaders of Gang in 100000
Robberies in This City.
LOOT VALUED AT $4,000
RECOVERED BY POLICE
Expensive Silks Found in
Hotel Rooms Occupied by
Chorus Girls, Who Say Ar
tiCIeS Were Given Them.

Theft from Omaha department
stores of more than 100000 worth
of goods in the last three months
was revealed Saturday, police say,
when seven men, three of whom
were employees of the A. D. T. Co.,
were arrested and nearly $4,000
worth OF goods, alleged to have been
stolen, was recovered from down
town hotel.
City and store detectives claim
the plan, whereby it was possible to
rob stores of several thousand dol
lars worth of merchandise nearly
every night, was the most cleverly
devised and executed of any in the
history of Omaha
Those arrested were w. A. Swan,
chieft operator for the A. D. T. Co.;
Thomas B. Robel, Hensl,aw hotel
and Bernard Dolan, Millard hotel;
also employees of the A. d. T. Co.;
Guy HUFF and Joseph Grady, en-
ployed III Douglas street theater;
Sam Frohm, merchant. 1925 Cali
fornia street; Tony Stuffler, ucr-
chant, $50 North Twcnty-fifth street,
end F. J. Welch. merchant, $50
North Twentyfifth street.
How System Worked.
The plan, detectives say, was 10,
the A. D. T. employees, who had
keys to the large downtown stores,
to unlock the buildings and be on
the lookout for city police while
their accomplices removed the
merchandise from the store.
Private detectives for the Bran
deis and Burgess-Nash stores have
been working on the case nearly six
months, they said, but were un-
able to secure sufficient evidence
to warrant any arrests earlier than
yesterday.
1t is believed others implicated in
the affair might have been appre-
hended had it been possible to keep
the matter secret longer, but it
was learned Friday night that at
least one of the men under suspi-
c,on was preparing to leave the
city.
1t is believed more Of the stolen
merchandise will be recovered, but
detectives say much of it has been
disposed of to unscrupulous mer-
chants, who may or may not have
known where it came from.
Police May Be Involved.
Nearly every article sold by the
larger department stores was in
cluded in the missing goods, but
worilen's clothing seemed to have
hrst choice and mems clothing was
second in popularity.
Acting Chief of Detectives Ander-
son refused Saturday night to dis
cuss details of the raid, particular
ly, report that several of the men
when arrested had stated that il
they went to. the pen they would
take several members of the Omaha
police force with them.
Many articles of clothing recov-
cred III the raid on the hotel Satur-
day were found in the rooms OF
chorus girls employed at a local the.
ater.
RAID wen Planned.
The girls claimed the garments
we're gwen to. them by gentlemen
friends" and they did not know thev
were stolen. None of the girls had
been arrested at E o'clock Saturday
night, although several had been
questioned by detectives.
SO we'll planned was the raid,
which occurred between II and
o'clock Saturday afternoon, that DO
lice had no trouble in locating all of
the men wanted.
-Four Of the chorus girls said thcv
were awakened by unusual noises
and saw three men searching dress
er drawers and their trunks and
carefully stacking their clothing in
the middle of the room.
Il thought we were being robbed
but | had Just as well be sweet
about it" said little blonde dancer
Saturday night as she tucked no a
stray curl and dabbed at her nose
with a powder puff.
Girls Protest Innocence.
Then | realized they wouldn't be
robbing us that time of day SO
asked what they wanted. They ex-
planned the stuff was stolen. It's
sure hard luck. None OF US ever sus-
pected our friends were that kind OF
guys. Maybe we ought not to have
taken the stuff but you know every
thing is awful high now and it isn't
for show girls to receiv,
as gifts from admirers"