Evening star., 1931-05-10
v,dians ofMe World5 Biggest Business
fhe Undey70orld, for They'll Spend25
b Get the Thief Stealing a Fi0e-Cent
i a Case Till Their Crook Is in Jail.

registered mail The employees were then
pushed into the truck, locked in and
abandoned.
INSPECTORS under F. W. Reuter- OF ST. Louis
were on the ground within 40 minutes of
the holdup but the only evidence they had
was the license number of the car, and it was
found to have been stolen. However, they
imme ediately began to set their traps. In all
cases where the loot contains negotiable securi-
ties, the procedure is the samos
Hundreds of letters, asking for descriptions
of the securities, are prepared and sent to every
person who had dispatched as much as one
piece Of the missing registered mail. From this
information lists are compiled and broadcast TO
banks and brokerage houses throughout the
country and sooner or later an attempt is
made to cash in coupon bond, and the
inspectors are tipped off,
On April 16, as a result OF the st. Louis
bond filter, local broker advised that he had
innocently purchased 300 worth Of the
stolen securities. The man who had nego-
tiated their sale had given fictitious name
and address.
Two days later another broker reported that
a man was trying to arrange the sale of $40 600
worth of the securities and working this tip
the inspectors captured John H. NiedringhauS.
He admitted that he knew that the bonds were
"hot," and said they we're in the possession Of
William F. Doering, ex-convict. and David
Weisman, who had arranged with him TO sell
them.
Arrested, he said that he would be willing to
testify for the Government, and, to protect him
from the gangsterS, the inspectors locked him
UP in jail for safe keeping.
Implicated also were Edward Linehan and
Ray Renard. A search warrant was obtained
for Doering's home, and there in an old suit
case 81, ,303, ,367 worth of the loot was recovered
and, in addition, $29 $50 worth of Liberty
bonds, which later were found to have been
stolen from three Illinois banks During the
search Doering and Weisman drove up and
were arrested Renard and Linehan were
rested at Clayton, Mo, the same day.
On August Is more than a score of persons
were indicted. Among them were William p.
(Dinty) Colbeck, Democratic city central COM
mitteeman and head of the Egan gang; Walter
Kelly, blind lawyer. and John A. Dummeyer,
broker, charged with assisting in the DISPOSE
ton Of the stolen securities; Max SimonSon,
. tailor TO whose place at Fenton Mo- the
bandits had fed after the holdup; Rudolph
Schmidt, David (Chippy) Robinson, Ray
Renard, Stevie Ryan, Louis C. (Red) Smith,
charged with the actual holdup, Doerng hav-
ing been the sixth.
The trial opened on october 81, 1924 Scores
Of witnesses we're marShaled, and the defense
was pathetically weak, but the jury disagreed
and new trial was set for January IS. How
ever, it was not necessary to wait that long.
The evidence uncovered included proof that
another mail robbery in May, 1928, at Staun-
ton. III, had been pulled by the same gang.
Colbeck and his pals went on trial for the
Staunton job . few weeks later, and this time
the verdict was guilty. Colbeck and seven
others all got rs years and fines Of IS, 900 each.
They were en- route next day to Leavenworth.
-Four others, involved in the st. Louis rob-
berry and not included in the Staunton verdict,
were sent up few months later. The Egan
Rats had been wiped out and every cent of
the ST. Louis booty had been recovered.