Evening star., 1924-08-09
POLICE LIEUTENANT
AND G OTHERS HELD
ON LIQUOR CHARGES
Sprinkle, Former U. S. Dep
uties, PatroIman and Hotel
Employe Give Selves Up.
$1,000 BOND FURNISHED:
8 MORE WARRANTS OUT
Men Indicted at Tampa. Accused
OF Conspiracy to Violate
Dry Law.

Joshua l. Sprinkle, lieutenant of
police; Charles Marshall and John
Newman, former deputy United States
marshals; William Haller, a police
man detailed at Union Station. and
Emil krauss, an employe of the
Rochester Hotel, and James and Brom-
ley Hunter, voluntarily surrendered
today to Stephen b Callahan.
chief deputy marshal, when notified
that warrants had been issued bv
united States Commissioner Needham
G Turnage on a certified COPY of an
indictment returned in Tampa. FLA.
charging the men, with eight others
from Washington, with a conspiracy
to violate the national prohibition
act.
The men were Immediately taken
before Commissioner Turnage. who
set bond at $1,000 for their appear
ance at hearing August 20, after serv-
ice is had on the other local defendants,
Bail was given and the men released
from custody.
Eight Warrants Remain.
Eight other warrants are in the hands
of the United States marshal, who de-
clined to make known the names until
ne has had chance to secure serv-
ice.
Lieut.. Sprinkle called attention to
the fact that for seven months he
pleaded for a trial of the charges
which are said to be the same as
those involved in an indictment in this
jurisdiction reported some months
ago. The officer pointed out that
United States Attorney Gordon had
stated to Justice Hit in open court
that he had no evidence to prove TIL"
charge against Sprinkle and asked
that the case against him be noli..
pressed.
Details Not Revealed.
While details OF the specific charges
against the men, whose identity was
officially for the first time
today, when they appeared volun-~
tarily, or were taken into custody,
were not given out, it is known that
each is alleged to have definite part
in what the government charges is
the huge conspiracy to bring liquor
from the offshore Florida islands TO
Washington and New York.
Several arrests have already been
made in Florida, where it is charged
a ring of influential managers of no
inconsequential wealth operated with
their own boats to smuggle in the
contraband liquor and connive with
those who brought it north.
Police as Confederates.
Practically all of the liquor was
brought north in suitcases and hand
bags. So we'll organized was the out
fit, according to the Governments
charges, that there seemed to be no
serious difficulty in getting the liquor
from the islands to Florida, through
all kinds of transportation channels,
including even the barred gates of
great union stations. At these
strategic points. it is charged, the
ring had succeeded in engaging con-
federates in positions of vital i'm
portance to them. such as railway
detectives or police.
Pullman porters and Pullman con-
ductors occupied prominent role.
1t was the porters who assisted the
director of transportation in carrying
the bags and satchels, the govern
ment charges. Each man going north
with a load of liquor in these inno-
cent looking containers, it is charged,
actually was in command of a large
number of these cases. He would be
assisted at all stations by porters or
station attendants. who were confed-
crates. Sufficient funds were realized
on the profits that all concerned were
able to reap large remuneration for
their part in the game, according to
the Government
Indictments In New York.
No word had come from New York
City up to noon today as to develop
ments there. 1t is known that some
persons in New York were indicted,
but their names have not been made
public. The names of those indicted
have been zealously guarded by all
officials concerned.
1t was pointed out today that one
unauthorized list of names printed in
Washington today contain grave er-
rors, and appeared to be the list of
those indicted here in a previous case
of conspiracy. 1t is true, according
to authorities, that some of those who
were indicted then have been in
dicted in Florida and are now wanted
by the Federal authorities. The two
lists, however, are not identical, by
any means. Some persons who were
indicted here before, it was learned
today, were not named by the Florida
Federal grand jury. while =, on the
other hand there is a much larger
number on the Florida list. including