Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-27

MAY BARE GANG SECRETS.
Burke Believed to Have Been Backed by
Gang OveEiOrd.
BY W. J. CONWAY.
CHICAGO, March 20 (R).-wnl the
arrest Of Fred Burke in Missouri I'M
lock new Pandora'B box Of crimeland
secrets?
Chicago wondered tonight, as a de-
tectiye squad sped southwark to arrest
him for the st. Valentines day mas
sacre, most spectacular page in Chi
Cages record OF gangland.
For though he was named by q cor
oner's jury as one Of the killers, Chi
cage was confident that back of him
lay some greater, more sinister force,
such as ZAP Capone, long an enemy
Of the Bugs" Moran gang, seven OF
whose members were moved down in
the machine-gun Staying. Or the
place an expiring seal Of terror on their
one-time sovereignty over the near
North Side.
May Reveal Secrets.
If Burke talks, officers are confident
they can lay bare gangland secrets that
hitherto not even the most drastic meas
ures have uncovered. If he reveals the
links in his tangled history, they believe
q new blow may be struck at gang
ramiflcationS.
A trivial traffic dispute resulted in
the overnight transposition Of Burke
from the estate of a wealthy, respected
resident in st. Joseph, Mich, to that OF
the most widely sought criminal In re-
cent history of the United States.
Burke, who, under the alias Of Fred
Dane, had purchased q palatial home
near ST. Joseph late In the Summer OF
1929, left the place early the evening
of December IA to meet his common
law wife, Viola Brenneman.
Shoots Traffic Ohicer.
While weaving through traffic in the
business district his car scraped tenders
with one driven by George Kool, a
young farmer. Kool leaped out and
demanded IS reparation, but Burke
laughed and ned.
Kool gave chase, picking up Charles
Sicily, 24-year-old traf1c officer. The
oficer leaped to the running board Of
Burke's car at an intersection. Without
warning, the gunman fired three slugs
into the policeman's body. Sicily fell
to the pavement, dead. Burke sped
away through the gathering crowd.
A st. Joseph police car, bearing sew
eral patrolmen, took up the pursuit and
found the Burke machine smashed
against pole just beyond the southern
city limits.
His own automobile demolished, Burke
had stopped the first motorist who
passed and forced him to race south at
the point of a pistol. Burke left the
first car and Communicated another
and then third, the latter taking him
by devious routes to Paw Paw, Mich,
where the trail was lost.
Find Hidden Arsenal.
| After notifying police throughout the
Midwest, the st. Joseph department sent
detectives to Burkes home. The officers
found concealed arsenal and $319, $50
in bonds stolen from the Farmers q
Merchants Bank of Jefferson, wis. An
other squad took Viola Brennan into
custody.
The next morning saw two develop
ments. The woman broke down ana
confessed the man they sought as Fred
Dane was Fred Burke.
While indignant Berrien County c1ti-
zens and the insurance company that
held q policy on the slain policeman's
life posted rewards totaling $4,000. two
machine guns, the heavy pieces OF the
| seized arsenal, were rushed to chicago.
Col. Calvin Goddard, firearms expert,
working in cooperation with the Chi
cago and New York Police Departments,
1 UldAC bCGtos OuA4Cto WGAG A4AS0 ~ASA.@ $3.50
weapons and compared with slugs taken
from the bodies Of slain gangsters.
Sought in UaIe SIayieg.
II Commissioner Grover Whalen, then
head of the New York police, announced
shortly afterward one OF the macnine
guns had been used In the Staying OF
FRANKIE Ua1e and that Burke, when ar
rested. would be questioned for possible
completely in the one-way ride OF Frank
Marlowe.
A coroner's jury in Chicago, basing
its verdict on the same evidence,
! named Burke as one Of the assaSsins
who executed seven members OF the
Bugs" Moran gang In q North Clark
street garage on February IA, 1929,
seven months after the Uale killing.
Results Of the balistic tests were
forwarded to Detroit, and although
they failed to aid police there in con-
Meeting Burke with the slaughter In
March, 1927, of three gangsters -
Prank Wright, Joseph Bloom and Ru-
ben Cohen-he still was suspected Of
the crime.
Meanwhile, reports picturing Burke
| as one of the most dangerous felens
In crime annals we're issued from three
widely separated cities and several other
communities demanded his detention
for grilling as q possible participant
1
Served Many Terms.
st. Louis authorities said he had
served terms for forgery in Missouri
and Michigan prisons; that he had
been q sniper for the notorious Egan's
rats, and that he had been acquitted
there in November, 1925, Of q charge
of participation In the daring 8,305
. robbery of the st. Louis United Rail-
/ ways general offices. The presiding
Judge protested the latter verdict with
You have released one Of the most
infamous ex-conYicts in the United
States"
Toledo (ohio) police said ne had
jumped Q $4,000 bond on which he
| was at liberty while awaiting trial
for the staying Of policeman during
the hold-up of an express company
truck.
Louisville (Ky) headquarters said
, he had shot q cashier during a bank
! robbery there.
: A dozen men thought to be Burke
: were seized from time to time in va
rious cities, but we're released when
/. their fingerprintS failed to correspond
with those Of the most widely sought
criminal in police history, wanted for
the murder of at least IL men.
. TWO PLEAD NOT GUILTY