New-York tribune., 1920-09-05
Beaten, Robbed
OF $4,000 in
Daylight Raid
President of Auto Rim Firm
Knocked Insensible by
Two Armed Thugs i'm His
+ Plant Near Broadway
Assailants Flee i'm Taxi
$4,000 Bill and Diamond
Worth $l5,O 600 i'm Loot;
$l,5OO Ring Also Taken

Two armed men entered the stock
pany on the third floor of 221 West
Fifty-third Street yesterday morning
and after beating insensible Philip S.
Smith, president of the company, made
off with money and jewclry valued at
$35, 200. The bandits escaped in taxi
cab
Shortly after he arrived at the COM
pany's Offices, MIR. Smith heard the
door to the stock room open. When
he investigated, he found two men
standing inside the door, hands on
hips, who asked him if Mr.. Smith was
in.
When the president replied, "You
are talking to Mr. Smith," both men
brought their hands from their hips
and thrust revolvers against Smiths
belt, admonishing him to keep still
and everything would be all right.
"Why, what's the matter?" Smith
asked. swinging his arms up and
of one Of the men. While this bandit
! was recovering his pistol, Smith a.
tempted to wrest the pistol from the
second man. The taller Of the two,
who was unable to recover his weapon
from behind packing case where it
had fallen, grabbed screw-driver
from a bench near by and attacked
! Smith, beating and jabbing him about
the temples with the tool. The struggle
lasted for some minutes, Smith MAX
ing repeated attempts to reach the
window to call for help. Finally, how
ever, he was overpowered and the
knr To Lv@ IL L.,
, kicking him in the face.
Harry Greenstein, the only employee
who had arrived, was working in a rear
room. He heard the commotion in the
| front of the loft, and ran down a rear
stairway and over to Broadway and
Fifty-third Street, where he found Pa
trolman James J. Tiffany, Of Traffic
Squad B. !,
AS Greenstein was leaving by a rear
entrance Matthew Paollillo. twenty
| four years old, Of 421 Sumner Avenue
in the building where the holdup oc-
Cured He heard the screams of Smith
coming from the upper story and start
| ed up the stairs. He was bowlcd over
however, by the hold-up men as they
fed down the stairs. The bandits
gained their car and sped off, leaving
a cloud of smoke, which made it i'm.
Eossipie 10 reao the numDer on the
license plate.
Paollillo ran to his car and gave
chase, but the bandits taxi was lost ir
a maze of traffic.
Smith told the police he was robbed
Of $ls,500 in cash, which included one
| $4,000 bill, Of which the serial num-
ber is B-232-A; a fve-carat diamond
ring. valued at $500. and loose stone
! worth $4,000.
/! Smith said that one Of the. bandits
resemb' cd man he had met in a cigar
store last Sunday. The man sold Smith
q gold sovereign. and said. that he had
| more to sell. Smith said that he gave
/ the stranger his Office address and tolt
| him to cali On him. Hc described this
man as slender foreigner, of very
dark complexion, nearly six feet tail
| and about twenty-oight years old. He
said he wore dark clothing and a yellow
straw hat, with conspicuously wide
black band. The other man was short
I er. with prominent cheek bones.
The pistol Of the taller Of the tive
bandits, 44-caliber regulation army
| revolver, was turned ever to Detectives
Flaherty and Whalen. Of the Forty.
seventh Street station, who have taken
(! charge Of tho case.