The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser., 1921-04-22
mail TKEFTS BY
NATIONAL RING
Postal Authorities Believe Ban
dts in Chicago HoIdup
Had ''Inside" Tip.
LOOT MAY EXCEED S5OO,000
Abandoned Sacks Are Found and
Money Wrappers in Them Indicate
Big Haul-Many Criminals
Got Jobs During Wartime.

Chicago.-A nationwide organiza-
ton of thieves whose directing genius
has inside information Of all large
currency shipments made by Federal
Reserve banks and whose agents are
working under cover in the registry
divisions of the country's principal
post offices has been responsible for
six registered mail robberieS aggre-
eating more than $6,000,000 within the
last nine months, according to postal
authorities at Washington, following
receipt of the details of the Dearborn
street station hold-up.
Hard on the heels of the report Of
this hold-up came another of a reg
istered mail robbery at Sullivan, Ind,
the home town Of Postmaster General
Hays.
Local postal inspectors declare free
ly that Chicago's latest mail robbery
was an inside job," but believe that
the shipment Of currency to 1ndianap-
oils banks was clipped off, from the
Chicago Federal Reserve Bank rather
than from the post office.
"a large criminal element obtained
jobs in the post office during the war,
when there was a shortage of men,,
declared Chief of Detectives Hughes.
''They are still there. They are be-
hind these mail robberies. The gov
ernment is largely to blame for fail
ing to arm it's employees who have
charge of the transfer of registered
mail pouches containing huge sums
Of money"
The outstanding developments In the
search for the Dearborn station rob-
bers were:
Photographs of Eddie Mcbride and
John McElvy, recently acquitted of the
murder of Policeman John Mullen,
were identified by witnesses as two
of the robbers.
On a tip received by Chief Hughes,
nineteen suspects, most of them post
office employees, were taken into GUS
tody in a raid on a poolroom. Oliver
Brown, manager of the Bellevue
garage, from which the mail robbers
stole the car used in the hold-up, was
taken into custody for questioning by
the federal authorities. Cecil Millar,
night watchman, who was asleep when
the car was stolen, was also arrested.
Information was obtained linking
the robbers with Tommy" Shupe, now
being held in the county Jail in con-
nection with the 100000 Union depot
mail theft. Shupes wife held whis-
pered conversation with him, it was
said, q short time before the robbery
was committed.
An abandoned mail sack found by
the police and believed to be the reg
istered pouch stolen by the bandits
contained wrappers for money, which,
the police. said, showed that from $780,
600 to $75O,OOO was obtained by the
robbers.
The abandoned pouch contained
wrappers indicating shipment of one
package of $4,000 in 81 bills, pack
age holding $4,000 in currency, an
other containing uuHuTeu 9l,oO.
bills and five large sacks consigned to
branches Of the Federal Reserve Bank
each sack containing five smaller
bags, which in turn held currency OF
large denomination.
Bystanders said that the robbery
was committed in less than two min,
utes, So sudden was the assault on
the mail truck that many conflicting
stories were given to the police by
witnesses.
According to one account, the rob
bers had played baseball all afternoon
in a lot adjoining the station where
the hold-up occurred. Other witnesses
said the robbers rushed up to the mail
truck in an automobile just as it was
preparing to unload.
The automobile used by the robbers
was found, abandoned. about two
miles from the place where the pouches
were discovered. Two bullet holes
were in the tonneau of the machi~'.