Evening star., 1924-11-17
MAN SLAIN BY AUTO
FIRST ROBBED THEN
RUN OVER, IS STORY
Confession Said to Have
Been Made by One of Two
Suspects in Tragedy.
DETECTIVES IN SQUADS
COMB CITY FOR OTHERS
Coroner's Jury Returns Verdict of
Criminal Responsibility in
Two Slayings.

ClimaxinE the startling wave of
traffic murders" that has engulfed
Washington since Halloween was the
astounding story unfolded to the po-
lice this afternoon that two hold-up
men, after robbing their victim,
Charles F. Jarvis, 140s Gerard street,
of his valuables, deliberately dumped
him into the roadway and killed him
by driving their heavy smoke-screen7-
ed touring car over him.
According TO this story, the driver
then exclaimed, My God! We've killed
him" and stepped on the gas in
dash for freedom, only to be trapped
few minutes later by police called
TO the scene by a passerby, Ernest
Muir of 1447 Maryland avenue north
east.
Confession is Alleged.
The lurid story was related to Capt
l.. @. Stol and detectives Of the ninth
precinct by one of the captured men.
James Robert O'Connor, who said
that Vernon S. Storey, arrested with
MN III the car, was at the wheel.
Both men are being held for the
coroner's jury.
A coroner's jury at the morgue this
afternoon passed judgment in two of
the five fatalities with the same words
KILLED by cars whose drivers are
unknown, and who are criminally re
sponsible for the Deaths
The verdictS were reached in the
cases of Miss Margaret Hefiin of Alex
andria, who was struck down and
dragged more than a hundred feet as
she was about to board a street car
at Florida avenue and First Street
last Friday night, and of William T
Riley of sos Irving street, killed at
Georgia avenue and w street more
than a week ago. In an adjoining room
lay the body of Mr. Jarvis.
Robbery Is Alleged.
One of the astounding angles of this
confession was an alleged admission by
Connor that he and Storey looted the
pockets of the dead or dying man, re-
| moving a watch and chain and a guam
tity of money. Capt. Stoll and Detec-
tives kuehling and Davis of No. pre-
cinct are investigating this story. The
/ valuables have not been found, Connor
declaring, it was asserted, that he threw
| them away.
With a rapid succession of trag-
| edies and near-tragedies and deter
mined to bring to justice the cold
blooded murderers," as Inspector
Clifford L. Grant today termed them,
the detective force divided into
squads and secured the city in a
re doubled effort to solve the mys-
! teries.
Quick action by bystanders and
immediate response by the police
alone prevented the escape of tho
allege traffic murderers" yesterday.
Residents saw a car, about to enter
the alley, dump on the street the
| broken body of its victim.
The two suspects are Vernon s
Story, his arm still in a sling from
bullet wound sustained in a boot
| leggers feud two weeks ago when
| Ernest Clancy, his companion, was
killed, and James r. "Biggy' Connor.
I said by the police to have criminal
record.
! Connor is said to have admitted he
was operating the gears for Storey.
| who was driving with one arm, and
| that their car knocked the man down
! and dragged him for some distance.
! They then lifted the form away from
the car, it is alleged, and drove up
! keanes lane, near Eighteenth street
and Benning road northeast, where
| they We're arrested by Policemen L.
NJ. Wilson and j. J. Mccarthy of No.
9 precinct as the car was being
| turned around. Two bottles of liquor
and quantity of .3S-caliber revolver
ammunition are said to have been
| found in the car. which is equipped
with smoke-scre apparatus.
POI1ce Spurreu IN Hunt.
Inspector Grant announced to his
men at roll call this morning that
they must bend as much effort to
catch the four missing drivers as
they would if the four persons
sought had gone out on the street.
armed with axes, and deliberately
murdered innocent men and women"
ANY one who viii deliberately run
away after his car has knocked down
&c of
the detective chief stated. Go after
your quarry with that fact in mind.
They ought to be charged, literally.
with murder"
Inspector Grant said that the
province of the police department
would end when the escaped drivers
are apprehended. We are going TO
find them, and when we do they Will
be held for the coroners jury, which
will turn them over to the grand
jury for indictment on, most prob
ably, a charge of manslaughter.
In addition to the case of Miss
Heffin, in which Miss Anna Stevens
of 912 Eleventh street northeast also
was badly injured, and the case or
Mr. Riley, the detective bureau IS
still confronted with the task of find
ing the drivers of the car that fatally
injured J. n. Powell at New Jersey
avenue and > street OH November J,
and DIR. William A. Pethel, knocked
down Halloween night by car tull
of celebrants at Twelfth and
streets.
Cooperation or citizens in running
down missing drivers was asked to-
day by the Police Department. At
the same time Maj. Daniel Sullivan.
Superintendent of police, announced
that a reward of 800 will be paid
in each case to persons supplying
information leading to the arrest of
any of those "criminally response
ble."
Bladen Busey, colored, so, 411G
Belt road, was taken to Casualty
Hospital early last night from North
Capitol and l. streets, where he was
knocked down by an automobile, the
driver of which failed to stop to in
uuire the extent of his injuries or
learn if death had resulted. a Sc
we're injury to his head was inflicted
His condition was reported as being
undetermined.
Mrs. Mary Ford, As, 1901 Fifteenth
street, thought to have been knocked
down on Rhode Island avenue near
Iowa Circle Saturday night by an
automobile, the driver of which also
fed, was reported at Emergency
Hospital this morning as being some.