New-York tribune., 1922-02-07
Suspect Held
For 81 100000
Drus:, s, Robbery
Worse Then Murderer,
Commissioner Tells Owner
Of Check for 500, 600
Trunk Load of Narcotics
Sets His Bail at $50, 600
II Sought Resides Man
for Whom 10Th Century
Was Tagged and Searched

TIE vess-hound sections of tho New
York Central's Twentieth Century 1iw
,ted, the road g crack New York Chi
cago train. were tagged Sunday night
II Rochester. it became known yester
DAY. while detectives traced the bag
gage check for 100000 worth Of mar
ootic drugs seized N = trunk at Grand
Central station and alleged to he part
o. the plunaer IN the Sioooooo Fhila
delphia drug robbery
Jacob Levine. ala Jacob Leone. alias
Jacob Stein, with q long police record
.s ~ alleged pickpockot and claiming
70 home held The tell-tale baggage
checks. He vas arrested - the same
Pullman with d representative of !. P.
Morgan & Co, bankers. and other
prominent people. whose rest WIS dis
turbed by the attending racket He
uas brought back 10 New York yester-
day ard arraiened before United states
Commissioner Hitchcock vho held the
prisoner in $4,000 bond and told him
~ was "worse than a murderer
Fourteen Suspects Sought
Fourteen suspects are sought II this
81 600 600 robbery, the detection of
which is III charge Of Ralph H. Oyler.
Federal narcotic director. who now IS
in Philadelphia The New York end
o. the case vas handled by Agents Man
ming and Mellon, assisted by Chief
Miles. of the New York Central Rail
road detective force
Assistant United states District A.
forneys Pclakof and Nennin prepared
the case against Levine. who is held
on four charge dealing, possessing
Transporting ard failing to register
narcotic drugs
Mr.. Polakof explained the case to
Commissioner Hitchcock. and said
Il am asking you to hold this de-
fcndant without bail
'1 cannot hold him without bail, ,"
said the Commissioners. but will
make the bond sufficiently high to in
sure his appearance. Will make It
$50 900"
If he gives that w'll ask for
higher bail" said polahof
Worse Than Muroer. Says Court
Are you trying to make me out
murderer ?" said Levine, highly excited
and leaning toward the Commissioner
"These chsrges are worse than mur-
der said Nr Polalof
Il fully agree with the District At
torney. said the Commissioner. shak-
irc his finger al the prisoner. Mar
cotic drug charges are among the
worst with which we have 10 deal You
are not a murderer. but If YOU handle
these dangerous drugs you are worse
than a murderer You do not Kill q
man outright. but YOU XIII him slowly.
You Kill his morals and his hopes You
are mentally and physically numbering
him"
"All right said Levine. fifty thous-
and dollars or a million dollara is
alike to me
Levine insisted that an acquaintance
rad asked him TO take the trunk
through to Chicago and had paid he
fare. Hc said he did not know what
was In the trunk. He has never been
arrested on q drug charge before, 50
far as his record shows
Director Oyler mad assigned Agents
Manning and Mellon TO watch the
Grand Central Terminal. and later they
were advised to watch for trunk from
Philadelphia and examine and seize it.
The agents spotted the trunk Of Levine,
an expensive wardrobe affair, checked
from Philadelphia. 1t was re-checked
i've minutes before train time to
ChNsgo.
Agent Picks Lock on Trunk
Mellon picked the lock Of the trunN
~ the baggage room and found it
loaded with gum opium in chunks and
morphine and heroin IN cans The
morphine carried Philadelphia label.
lie ordered the trunk held by the rail
road detectives and tried TO reach the
Twentieth Century Limited, but missed
Il by q few seconds.
With the aid Of Detective Miles they
opened the railroads private dispatch
lines and ordered all three sections Of
tAe fast train searched at Rochester
tor the baggage check, the number of
which was telegraphed forward
The $1,000 600 worth Of drugs IN
volved IN the case were sold at a gov
ernment sale in Philadelphia to firm
IN New York. They we're consigned
70 this city by auto truck and the auto
truck carrying the whole shipment was
stolen by men who presented q bogus