The New York herald., 1921-12-07
MEN WITH BADGES
TAKE WINE TRUCK
81 Cases Believed to Have
Been Stolen by Fake Pro-
hibition Agents.
FIRES REVEAL Z STILLS
Explosions in Easements Show
That Booze Industry
Is Continuing.
FIRES REVEAL : STILLS

driver for The Continental Dis
tributing Company of ITO Bowery, whose
trucks are occa sionally held up by Izzy
Einstein and other enforcement agents,
called up prohibition headquarters yes
terday and reported that six men who
claimed TO be agents had just halted one
Of its trucks in West Sixty-flrst street
and had then run away with 1t. There
were eighty-one cases of wine aboard
the truck, he said about TO be distributed
for sacramental purposes.
The driver and his helper had been
stopped by six men in a machine. who
showed shields and a fash of cold steel
as we'll. When one of them declared his
intention of taking the truckmen down
TO the Federal Building instead of to
prohibition headquarters. where those
arrested for alleged violation of the VOL
stead act are first brought, the truck
mems suspicious we're aroused, Ior they
knew what the proper procedure should
be.
So the driver telephoned his Office,
while the truck and the machine stood
outside the store in which he made his
call, and told his boss what had hap
pened SO far. AS he was about to hang
up the receiver he shouted through the
transmitter that his helper had just
been thrown off the truck and that two
Of the men we're driving it away while
the others followed in their own ma
chine The police said they had no re-
port of the holdup.
Barrel Seemed to Contain Beer.
A little later two enforcement agents
who were rounding the corner of Sixth
avenue and Twenty-5eventh street on
their way to headquarters, observed
negro driving a trucls down Sixth ave-
nue. There were three barrels aboard.
Upon looking them over the agents
found that two were cmpties and that
third was filled with what appeared to
be beer which had reached its majority.
The negro said his name was Lee A.
Williams. and that ne had half inter-
est in the truck. He would not say who
held the other half or where he was
going. He had come over from New
Jersey. He said he had no office. The
beer was seized and he was held on
charge OF illegal transportation.
The filing of the sealed indictment of
Monday by the Federal Grand Jury.
which has been investigating complaints
OF lax prohibition enforcement, appar-
entity did not complete the inquiry. This
fact became known yesterday after
Judge Learned Hand had sworn in the
new Grand Jury, when subpoenas were
served on persons examined by the re-
firing Jury to appear for further ques-
tioning to-day
1t is understood that when the indict-
nnents are made known they will dis
close that two local banks are involved
in forged liquor permit transactions.
The banks are said to have advanced
more than S1,0oo0oo on bootleggers'
notes, believing that the permits now
declared fraudulent were genuine with
drawal papers.
Explosions Reveal stills.
Explosions and fire revealed to the
authorities yesterday the existence Of
seven whislSey stills. -Four were found
by fireInen in a basement under the
grocery store OF G. Del Guidice, 101
Thompson street Two more were found
as the result of an explosion and fire
III the basement OF a house at $50 For
tieth street, Brooklyn. The other was
in Jersey City.
-Four men arrested Monday night by
agents under Hugh McQuillan. chief of
the special intelligence unit OF the In
ternal Revenue Bureau, charged with
the fraudulent use of forged liquor
permits bearing the signature of the
New Jersey director and that of T.. G.
Yellowley. and calling for the release OF
100 barrels Of grain alcohol, were held
IN s2.500 bail each by United States
Commissioner, Hitchcock for a hearing.
Enforcement agents from the Newark
office raided the Arlington Hotel in Jer
sey City yesterday with warrant and
seized liquors worth $4,000. Maurice
Doddy, the proprietor gave s2,50o bail
before United States Commissioner Hen
dricksnn TO appaar for examination.