The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-03-14
100000 IN
GEMS LOOT OF
BANDIT GANG
Huge Reward Spurs Search
of Detectives for Florida
Thieves.
SALESMAN'S KEYS USED
Employe of Famous Firm Is
Kidnapped; Gives Up
Safe Combinations.
81 Enifed Press

oy CNtteU Ffe6S
PALM BEACH, Fla, March ID
A reward of $4,000 for informat;o,,
ieaolng to the arrest of the ha,~
oltS and still larger rewards predict.
ca Tor the return of the niss;r,
jewels Spurred a small army of i,s9
Surance detectives which descended
upon Palm Beach today to iuvesfi-
gaze the theft fmore than 81 .O0o.
OOO OF Jewels from Charlton e. Co
international jewelers..
IL was the biggest level robbery
ever committed in Florida. and was
done, Sheriff R. c. Baker believes
by New York gang of bandits WIN
nave committed several other rob-
oerles along the east coast recently.
Inc unwilling victim of the gang.
QUO wagner, middle-aged sales
man, remained in secIusion in
hotel. Captured by the robbers. he
nad given them keys and safe com
olnations for the firms palm
beach store, enabling them TO enter
t t,le score quietly and get away with
the huge amount of gems.
Manager Refuses to Talk
With Wagner was Grant A pso
cock, local manager for Charlton
d. Co. He refused to discuss
the affair with newspaper nne1,
but told the United Press over tha
telephone that WAGNER is here
Win MIN, but I won't let him talk"
There isn't anything to it. and
The less said about it in the news
papers, the better" Peacock said
Our store was entered and all the
valuable jewelry and gems were
taken. The loss was fully covered
by insurance. That's all there is
to it."
Sheriff Baker. who took charge of
the police investigation of the crime
before insurance detectives arrived
visited the stucco bungalow where
wagner was held prisoner over
night and said he believed the
salesman's story was substantially
true.
Believe Story Is True
There were a few slight discrep-
ancies in the story, he said. but
he believed that Wagner, who has
served Carleton and Company for
seventeen years, had no part in the
crime.
The story told by Wagner was az
follows:
He was returning to his hotel with
Peacock shortly before midnight
Thursday night when he was hailed
by his first name by a man sitting
in a large sedan outside the
entrance. He walked over to the
car, and the man, initiating
drunkenness, grasped him by the
arm.
Before he could break away he
was pulled into the car and thrown
into the rear seat, with handouts
clamped on his wrists and a
blanket thrown over his head TO
prevent him from identifying any
Of the four men in the car.
Tied to Kitchen Sink
The automobile went rapidly
southwark from the hotel, passed
through West Palm Beach and
finally stopped at a small stucco
bungalow in a subdivision known as
Colonial Estates"
In the house WAGNER was tied TO
the kitchen sink while his caDtors
conversed in low tones. At their
demand, he gave them the keys to
the jewelry store and the combina-
ton to its safe. Then all but one
OF the bandits left, leaving only a
guard over Wagner.
The three returned about a. M.
and left again with the guard.
Wagner Immediately set to work on
his bonds, freed himself and notified
Peacock, who, III turn telephoned
police.
Stripped of All Gems
A con Using angle is given to the
case by the assertion of E. II.
Odum tight Waterman at the store,
who said that he had left the store
at 7 a. m. and that it was intact
at that hour.
When Peacock and police arrived
at the store about $3.50 a. m, how
ever, the place was in the widest
confusion. It was stripped of every
gem Of any value.
A partial list of the missing
jewels, as given out by Sheriff
Baker, included one pearl necklace
valued at $4,000 and another at
$4,000; ore $4,000 diamond ring
and several other rings totaling
$4,000; bracelets worth 500 600:
brooches totaiing $4,000, and
pearls worth s250,000 The total
value Of the missing gems was wen
over 100000.
The bandits were believed to have
escaped by automobile in the direc-
fioY1 of NFior7 mi