The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-12-19
FICER |S KILLED
 WHILE BANDITS SECURE S2OO,OOO
Denver Mint Robbery Greatest in History of Nation. One of Masked
 Band Shot
tcontinued From Page One,


 As he did so. Peter Kiendinger. a guard. fired with a rifle at the ban
 dit who was seen to crumple on the i running board.
 He was pulled inside the car by the driver. Kiendinger Is positive
 that he wounded the fugitive. Five riot cars answered the first
 call from the mint. One of the police ears was wrecked in a collision but
 the occupants of the car escaped in- jury.
 Belonged to Bnnk
 The money was the property of the
 Denver Federal Reserve bank, the mint merely being a depository for it. According to R. J. Grant, director
 of the mint. receipt for the money
 has been issued by J. P. Olsen, cash
 isr of the bank, just prior to moving the money outside the mint where the bandits obtained it. Manager
 Burkheardt of Che reserve bank later
 issued statement saying that the
 money was insured. Director Grant
 also announced that the numbers Of every bill in the consignment was on record and that banks throughout the country would be warned to be on the lookout for them.
 So terrific was the gun fire that firty distinct bullet holes can be
 counted in the transom above the
 entrance to tho mint and the win 1 dows of the second story building.
 The granite walls of the governme ent building likewise are clipped and buildings across the street show the
 intensity of the fire of tho guards. Windows were riddled and many
 narrow escapes from bullets were re- ported.
 Miss Katherine Feist, an employe of restaurant directly across the street declared that in addition to the bandits who leaped out of the
 car. she saw two men hiding behind
 telephone poles nearby who ap- parently were members of the gang. Paul Clara, IT years old, gave a thrilling account of the engagement. He declared he was standing directly across the street from the mint when the bandit car. heavily curtained. drew up.
 "Three of the men, all carrying shotguns. jumped out and rushed up to the guard standing nearest the Reserve bank truck" he said, "I couldn't hear what they said but they apparently were telling him to open the wagon. He shook his head and then one of the bandits struck him terrific blow. do not know wheth- CT 1t was with his fist or a gun. l As the guard staggered under the blow shot rang out and he crum- pied to the pavement.
 Guards Rush Out At the sound of the shot a num- Der of guards came running out Of the mint and started firing. They were shooting at the bandits who be- gan shooting back. One of the ban dits remained in the car hunched down behind the wheel.
 Just as I lodged behind a build ing the guards began pepperlng the front of 1t. saw one of the bandits shooting at the lock on the door of
 the truck. The first shot shattered | the window of the truck. Then had to get around the corner to avoid being shot
 When there was 8 lull in the fir Ing l looked out and saw the bandits jumping for their car. One of them sprang On the running board on the opposite side from the mint and crouched down. Another one jumped in beside the driver Just as he did so shot from one of the guards struck him in the face. saw the blood gush
 out and the bandit slumped down in his seat like he might have been hurt badly. The fourth of the gang jumped in the rear seat and the ma chine bore up East Colfax Bandits Husky Men "The wounded guard was lying on the sidewalk in front of the mint. The other guards ran up to him as I ran across the street. One of the guards had taken his coat off and was putting it under the head of the wounded man.
 Al. They were big husky men wearing 1 white collars and looked like i sports"
 was arrested but after questioning l he was released.
 The only tangible clew that the 1 police have is . bloody sawed off shotgun which was picked up in the street about half block away from | the mint where it had heen dropped ! from the fleeting bandit car The l gun was loaded with extra size buckshot.
 No Inside Aid A theory advanced during the | early investigation as a result of the l finding of door in an inner office shattered by bullet, that possibly 1 the bandits had had inside assistance,
 WdS dpdHuoHeu late lHlS afternoon when the bullet which went through the glass in the door was found. Chief of Police Williams announced that Denver police tonight were
 guarding all roads leading out of the city but that he believed the bandits still were in hiding in Denver. Or ders issued to policemen by Chief ! Williams said:
 stop every car on every road out of Denver and make every man acy count for him mself-and shoot If you find the robbers"
 The funds stolen in today's rob hery were not the property of tho
 Denver mint" declared R. ]. Grant.
 director of the mint in a statement
 issued late this afternoon in which he gave it as his opinion that two of the bandits were wounded The. in- formation bulletin by the police de-
 partment, however. stated that only one of the bandits. the one on the running board had been wounded.
 Money stored for Bank Tt has been customary for us to keep money at the mint merely as an accommodation for the federal reserve bank, our vault being better suited for the storage of the funds MT Grant said. When it becomes necessary to transfer funds. the treasury wires us ana on the pre- sentation of . receipt from the bank. :! we release the funds to them. The l instant the money leaves the cash
 icr's :rdow we have nothing more 1 to do with the funds
 1 The men In charge of the money were employees of the federal reserve
 bank and the money itself belonged l to the bank. Tlie Denver mint was not connected with the robbery in any way except that it occurred in , front of the mint aud our employees
 fired on the bandits as they rode 1 away.