Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-20
SENATE MORTGAGE
INQUIRY W|DENED
Secret Files on Smith Co. and
Other Probes to Be
Given Committee.

Indications as to how deeply the
Blaine subcommittee will delve into the
entire field of real estate mortgage
transactions in the District were re-
vealed yesterday when it was learned
that the subcommittee had asked for
and secured permission to use the secret
! files of the Department of Justice COW
| ering the current investigation of the
F. H. Smith Co., as we'll as an inquiry
into the companys activities begun six
years ago.
Oscar H. Brinkman, special attorney
| for the subcommittee, also announced
that he had obtained from District At
torney Leo A. Rover the complete files
years 1924 and 1925.
A Senate subcommittee, headed by
Senator Ball, in 1924 conducted an in
veStigation into the rental and housing
situation in the District. In the course
of this investigation the activities of
the Smith company were touched upon.
A concurrent investigation of the same
matters by the office of Peyton Gordon,
then District attorney, extended into
1925, Brinkman said.
Expects Data to Be Ready by FAN.
I'VE are investigating all of these rec
ords now" Brinkman declared, land
will continue to investigate them. We
expect to have all the data in the hands
of the committee when 1t meets, or be-
| fore 1t meets in the Fall"
Brmkman also indicated that there
may be highly important developments
in the near future.
He said that he was not in posi-
ton at this time to state the precise
use the committee expects to make of
the information placed in its hands or
to name the individuals 1t will involve.
A second investigation of the Smith
company was started last year by Nu-
gent Dodds, special assistant to the At
torney General. Dodds has secured in
| dictments against the company and sew
eral of is officials, charging that thou
sands of persons in this country have
been defrauded of millions of dollars
through purchasing securities sold by
the Smith organization.
Rover announced yesterday that he
would go before the District grand jury
next Thursday to ask for an indictment
of Jacob Shapiro, president of the real
estate firm of Joseph Shapiro Co., Inc
on charges of false pretenses.
Surrenders Voluntarily.
Shapiro voluntarily surrendered to
the district attorney last Friday when
warrant was sworn out charging him
with falsely representing the encum-
brances on house he had sold to Wal
ter S. FriSbie, Government clerk. The
realtor was released on bond of $4,000
pending a hearing on August before
United States Commissioner Needham
c. Turnage.
The forthcoming grand Jury inquiry
Rover intimated, probably will be fol-
lowed by Others, as he anticipated q
number of complaints during the COM
ing week from purchasers of property
While Rover reiterated that the Frisbie
complaint is the only one of an alleged
criminal nature which his office has
received, he said he had heard rumors
Of many victims in Washington Of ques-
tionable practices in the sale of real
estate.
Brinkman is authority for the state
ment that there are approximately l,50C
local cases involving so-called hidden
trusts" the existence of which was dis.
covered by the purchasers Of home.
months after settlement. He told the
Blaine Committee at its recent hearinf
at least that number of cases were
known to him. Shapiro had been sub,
tpoenaed TO appear before the commit.
tee, but upon his refusal to waive i'm.
munity from possible prosecution II
court he was relieved from testifyinl
regarding such cases as the committe;
heard involving his own firm.