The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-01-14
BANDIT GANG
BLASTS CAR;
FOUR KILLED
Pay Roll Robbery Attempt
Is Baked by Bold
Miner.

BIZ United Press
WILKESBARRE, Pa, Jan. IA
A band of holdup men who dyna-
mited a makeShift mine pay car on
Newport mountain side, killing
four men and injuring six, in a
daring attempt to gain a $4,000
pay roll, used an automobile with
New York license plates to escape,
police told the United Press today.
The attempted holdup was frus-
trated through heroism Of one of
the survivors Of the cars crew.
At first, the blast was believed to
have been work Of amateurs, but
later investigation by local and state
police revealed an elaborate and
careful plan by the robbers, who we're
willing to commit mass murder to
get the pay roll.
According to the police. the ban
dts utilized mine dynamite, a highly
powerful explosive. The dynamite
was placed between the narrow
gauge tracks of the private railroad
owned by the Glen Alden Coal Com
pany at point midway between
Hanover and Warrior Run.
A wire ran from the explosive
several hundred feet into the sur
rounding woods where the robbers,
believed to be four in number, had
arranged a protective barricade of
sand bags. A radio G battery was
used to explode the dynamite.
Started From Colliery
1t was late Monday afternoon
when the pay car, ordinarily first
aid mine car. started from the
Truesdale colliery, bearing the pay
master and his crew, for the Glen
Alden Coal Company's tunnel No.
20. The car was drawn by a small
electric locomotive.
Bolted to the bottom of the pay
car was an iron box containing the
money.
Slowly the pay car was drawn up
the side of Newport mountain
toward the tunnel mouth, where
hundreds of miners y'ere awaiting
their fortnightly salary. The
bandits watched from behind their
sandbag shelter and after the cleo
trio engine had passed over the
hidden dynamite, they touched the
wire to the battery.
There was a terrific conclusion
and debris was hurled in all direc~
lions as the mine car was blown
to bits. The iron money box was
shattered and the paper currency
virtually showed on the mountain
side.
Three Killed Instantly
Three of the pay roll crew were
killed instantly. They were: Ar
thur c. Webb, 80, Scranton, paymaS-
ter in charge; Frank Budzinski, 40,
miner of Plymouth, and Martin
Burns, 81, section foreman Of Han
over township. The fourth victim,
James Shevlin, 80, a section fore
man of Hanover township, died in 3
hospital.
Six others on the pay roll car and
engine were injured, two seriously.
The engine, its coupling broken, ran
wild down the mountainside, finally
jumping the track at a sharp curve.
Meanwhile, the bandits ran from
behind the barricade toward the
pay car. AS they approached the
wreckage, John Sookil so, a Ply
mouth miner, dazed and injured,
rose to his feet and started toward
what remained of the money chest.
One of the robbers shouted:
"Stop! Get away from there!"
But Sookil staggered on. I'm
nerved the robbers turned and fed
into the woods. Police say the
dynamiters ran into the nearby
hamlet of Warrior Run and escaped
in their automobile,
Posses were formed to search the
entire countryside, with instructions
to bring in the bandits dead or
alive. 1t was believed the bandits
headed toward the New York line,
through Scranton, over the Bing-
| hamton turnpike.