The Washington herald., 1920-11-15
TRAIN ROBBERS
GET S1,0OO,OOO,
PART US. GOLD
Break Open Mail Cars at
Omaha, Fling Bags From
Windows.
BELIEVE TT INSIDE JOB
Sacks.of Bonds and Curren-
cy Taken-No Trace Of
Bandits Found.

OMAHA, Neb-, Nov. lf.-Aan rob-
bers last night looted the treasure
car of the Burlington Railroads
transcontinental fast mail train be-
tween Omaha and Council Bluffs and
got away with treasure variousry
estimated TO be worth between
81. .OoO, 900 to sl.2oo.ooo.
The treasure consisted Of boxes
of gold being shipped from the mint
at San Francisco 10 the Treasury Al
and currency from banks in many
California cities to New York City
and points on the Atlantic seaboard-
The amount of the loot has not been
confirmed.
1T is the biggest train robbery
in twenty-five years. says Capt
Charles Shaffer, of the Council Bluffs
Police Department
The robbery took place between
Omaha and Council Bluffs and not
more than twenty to thirty minutef
were consumed in the work. TH
robbers gained access to the treaj \
ure car of the fast mail when q
train stopped at Union Pac Il
Transfer, between Omaha and cousS
Gil Bluffs.
Discovery Of Robbery.
When the train reached the city
depot in Council Bluffs the robbery
was discovered. The robbers had
broken a door on the side OF the
mail car and had thrown registered
pouches and boxes OF gold out along
the railroad track.
Accomplices in automobiles are
supposed to have followed the train
and to have picked up the vaiu-
! ables- Later, when pursuit was or
ganized, all trace of thieves and
their plunder had disappeared.
Only the accidental discovery cf
the robbery prevented completes
looting OF all the vaiuables in The
car, the officials believe
= srstay practically The entire po-
! lice sand detective forces OF boch
Omaha and Council Bluffs. as wen
as all postal inspectors and Depart
ment Of Justice agents in this ter
ritorl. worked on thh case
Up to 9 o'clock not a single clue
had been secured and not a single
{ arrest had been made. All pubic
garages in bob Omaha and Council
Bluffs were searched and dozens OF
private garages inspected. The
usual haunts Of the underworld
were thoroughly investigated, but
the robbers had made good their
getaway and not a trace has been
found.
Believe IL an Inside job.
The police believe the robbery
was an inside job.
The plot was well organized and
well executed" said Chief OF Police
Eberstein, Of Omaha. 1T was the
work Of professionals assisted by
someone who knew just how the
registered mail was handled. The
thieves knew just what they were
looking for.
They must have known of the
treasury gold shipment. They knew
just which one of the six cars OF the
/ train carried the registered mail
and spent no time botherinE with
other cars which contained only the
regular mail"
The robbery was discovered when
a mail clerk on the train attempted
to pass through the car. He found
the door chains on the inside. Sus-
pectinE trouble he called other
clerks TO his assistance and broke
down the door. The robbers. who
are thought to have been inside the
car at the time, leaped from the
train before the mail clerks SUI
ceeded in getting through the door.
The valuables came in from the
coast on Union Pacific aud were
transferred to the Burlington fast
mail train at this point. The exact
amount lost will probably not be
known until numerous banks IN
California hear from their corrs-
spondents in the East.