Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-15
Chicago Killings Blamed on
Hiiacking Six Weeks Ago.
Moran Men Said to Have
Accused Officers as Aides.
0MMISSI0NER BRANDS
STATEMENT AS ALL ROT
Silloway Declares He Hopes to
Learn Names of Actual Slayers
by Tonight-Swanson Suspects
Detroit Gang-Inquest Is Open
ed in Windy City.
BY the Associated Press.

ed in Windy City.
BY the Associated Press.
CHICAGO, February 15.-Maj.
Fred D. Silloway, assistant prohi-
bition administrator, today ad-
vanced the theory that police Of
ficers themselves killed the seven
gangSterS shot to death in North
Side gang stronghold yesterday,
and declared that he believed the
names of the actual slayers would
be known before night.
Maj. Silloway expressed the belief
that the killings yesterday were the
direct outgrowth of hijacking job here
six weeks ago, when 500 cases of whisky
were taken from the Moran gang by q
West Side liquor running outfit Mai.
Silloway said he did not believe the
theft of the liquor by one faction from
the other could have been carried out
in broad daylight on well travelled
boulevard without police assistance.
The Moran gang, he said, apparently
got the same idea and cut of tribute
that the prohibition officer said the
gang had paid the police.
Maj. Silloway said he believed the
killings were in retaliation for stopping
the projection money and declared he
expected to gain information as to the
actual killers during the day.
Evidently Known to Gang.
He said some of the killers wore
police uniforms, that an automobile
resembling a police squad car, with
gong on the side. was used by them
and that the slayers evidently were well
known to the Moran gang, as they
were admitted without question:
After detailing the hijacking and his
belief that the police assisted in It, Maj
Silloway said:
Leaders of the Moran gang told the
police that they would no longer give
them their regular donations for pro-
lection because of this job. So the
police probably selected the new method
of murder in retaliation. The fact that
a police squad car. with a gong on the
side, which was seen by several wit
nesses, together with the fact that
those in the garage apparently recog-
nized two of the men in police uniform
and admitted them without question,
substantiates my theory that they were
policemen.
THE murderers went to the garage
with the intention of getting the Gusen-
berg brothers and Clark, Moran's
brother-in-law, who accused the police
of aiding in the hijacking job When
they entered the garage and saw four
other men there, they impulsively shot
all present"
Says Moran Is i'm Detroit.
Moran, Maj. Silloway said, is in De-
troit, where he has been for two weeks.
He said he expected to obtain from an
other man, Henry WinkelStein describ-
ed by him as the brains of Moran's
gang, the details that led up to the
shooting along with the names of the
Slayers.
Police Commissioner Russell and
Deputy Commissioner John Siege, in
charge OF the detective bureau. had
left their offices to go to the inquest
Tor the seven slain men at the time
Silloway made his announcement.
Commissioner Russell characterized
Maj. Sideways theory and statement
as "all rot" but added that mo mat
and clean this case up"
He was attending the coroner's in
quest when he made the statement.
Capt. James Gleason, Stege's assist
ant, however, said it was ridiculous to
suppose police were involved in the
murders. A viSored cap was picked up
In the garage, he said, but 1t was that
of doorman. Policemen, he said.
would never have marched men out oil
the garage with their hands over their
neads, unarmed, as witnesses described
the exit of yesterday.
Those men were gangSterS, mas
querading as officers" he declared en-
bhatically. THE only thing Frank
Guesenberg, who died in the hospital
later, would say, was that two of the
men were wearing uniforms. So that
has given the impression policemen
were involved"
Russell was quoted as saying, "This
will be the end of gang war in Chicago
The police will fight it out to the death
with the gunmen" He has ascribed
most of the gang killings to the prohib:-
tion laws.
Purple Gang" Blamed.
Chief Russell said there were so many
violators of the dry law that the result
ing now OF money for Illicit liquor set
the gangsters crazy for tainted money
even to Staying each other to garner the
lucre
States Attorney Swanson said he be-
lieved the slayers were members of the
Purple gang" of Detroit. imported here
for the purpose so that they would not
be known when they invaded the Moran
Police we're uncertain whether Moran
might have been kidnapped and slain py
the killers although 1t was reported he
was in hiding.
Meanwhile Detroit police had been
asked to round up every known member
Of the Purple gang there and find out
where every other member is. Detroit
said they would have the
before the day was over.
Check on Old Squad Cars.
Authorities also we're checking on all
old squad cars which had been sold
after several witnesses said the
car used by the killers resembled a DO
lice car and carried a gong similar to
those used by such cars. The police
had two theories as to how all the ganc
happened to be gathered In the garage
when they were shot down.
One was that they had been put on
the spot"-lured there for purposes of
assassination: the other was that they
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