The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-05-08
TRAIN PETS CATS
AS INCENDIARIES
Scheme to Sell Out Stocks
to the Insurance
Companies
CRIMINALS IN TRADE
Famous Investigator Reveals
Some Tricks Of Clever
Commercial Frauds

NEW YORK, May ..- Declaring
that the present period Of Industrial
depression and the Rrcnt wave ~ no.
claI crime which has boon Hwccpirg
the country has also bcou accompan-
fed by an Increase ~ what is com
monty called commercial crime, G, y.
West. manager Of the nvcuigation
and prosecution department, nation
nl Association Of Credit Men. has cN.
pogpd some Of the schemes devised
60 dofraud creditors.
During the period ~ prosperity
which was enjoyed for some years
paH. the professional commercial
swindlor wag not engaged In his nsi-
nj vocation because ~ was easier 10
make money honestly. Now that
business conditions have changed tho
trade crooks have returned to their
old games" said Mr.. West, who IT,
ono of the best known investigators
IN the country. lie has severA nick
names. among them being 'Hephon,'
Deacon West" Dean Wcst," and
Sherlock Holmes" Mr. West has
been responsible for sending more
commercial crooks to jail than any
other man In America.
while the numerous forms of 40
cial crime are well known To the
public, the workings of the CONNER
cial criminals are not familiar 10
most persons" said MIR. West
"The latter class deal principally
with fraudulent bankruptcies, the
muloting OF creditprs, tnd often
even, the ruinlng Of honest NOR
chants, ms well M the defeating OF
a. Ill. . . LA
Not Ordinary Pickpockcts.
"The commercial criminals would
not pick "a mans pockets, they would
not do person n bodily harm. All.
no. They are far too clever for that
They are polished Eenuemcnt. wen
educated and extremely smart In
devising schemes Tor gaining their
ends
"The man who seeks to defraud
the firms with which no ~ dealing
on credit does his work carefully. He
secures'smAll loans. paying the bills
usually In fun, then gradually In
creases the amount OF his orders un-
~ the sum reaches a high mark,
Then Is the anticipated time for the
fraudulent bankruptcy or other
scheme.
There are great many ways IN
bankruptcy frauds the most common
methods of beating the law are the
concealment of assets. transfer OF
stock with the aid OF n false burglary
or fire and the dishonest claims Of
debts contracted and paid. usually to
relatives
sometimes dishonest lawyers ad-
wise and point out methods Of work :
ing fraudulent bankruptcy; in somo
eases dishonest referees and attor-
neys loot bankrupt estates: OCCASION
ally corrupt politics enters into tho
game and sometimes even credit men
themselves. apparently stung by the
crooks. are In reality working with
the scoundrels 10 put the fraud
across.
"often Il Is necessary to contend
with an ORGANIZED gang operating In
several citieS throughout the coun-
try and controlling arson and burg
larry gangs, shippers, receivers. law
yers and others
at H. the man higher IN the
master mind. that we are most con-
cerned In getting. Many OF their
workers are merely dupos.
sixteen mon higher up In Chi
cago wero responsible for three fail
ures aggregatlng 100000. Of which
si65.0e0 has already been recovered.
I'm another case 80 failures have
been traced TO one Philadelphia
Wholesale house.
sherlock ON the job.
while investigating a case In Pat
erson, N. j., not long ago became
interested In the disappearance OF a
dozen satchels used for transporting
I found that they had been shipped
animals and decided To trace them.
to Philadelphia and then TO Chester.
Pa. To Chester | went 10 the home
OF tho mans father whom | found to
be apparently interested in cats
but upon further search discov-
cred the reason. Tho cats were being
trained To fight lamps and when
their trainlng was completed they
were sold for $3.50 each.
Thus when "a man wanted A firo
In his store all that was necessary
was for him To purchase ono af thosc
animals and leave II in his store with
lighted lamp, then go home and go
to be- assured that while he slept the
cat would knock over the light and
his shop would be destroyed by tire.
Tho setting OF fires IN 4 storr.
however. does not ud bankrppts Ia
getting insurance, for the insurance
money Is paid to the creditors. nh
purpose OF the fire is to cover up tho
removing OF gods or tho concoaln,ant
OF assets. And while Insurance is he
ing paid for a fire in one city. often
the same articles are bcing usoI in
another city To help stock anot lcr
prospective failure or are being sold
for profit, having generally cost
their possessors nothing because ~
the manner In which the large credit
concerns have been beaten out OF
their hills"