Evening star., 1932-02-08
ALL POLICE Join
HUNT FOR GUNMAN
SO HeaviIy-Armed Men Patrol
Area Where Man Was Slain
and Three Shot.
Continued From First Page)

N'NSN tAlC iIdll age anu ScIlSI al
| appearance tally with descriptions of
the gunman-and also because of his
attempted sulCide-InSpector Frank S.
w. Burke, chief of detectives decided
TO nave Sergt. Harry X. Wilson. head
OF the homicide squad, quiz him re-
garding the series of shootings.
Armed Men Patrol Area.
Meanwhile, 10 headquarters detectives
| ana 70 policemen, all heavily armed,
nave been ordered to patrol the North
west section each night
| After the first shootings a dozen
! headquarterS men, cruising in automo-
| bueS, were assigned to the area. but
Rledel was murdered in spite of their
i activities,
The detectives are scouting through
the section in radio-equipped cars. %
OF the polcemen in private machines
and on motor cycles They have been
instructed to be constantly on the alert
for automobiles of the same general ap-
| pearance as the one used in the shoot
! lngS and to arreS5 any motorist acting
| SUSpiclOuSly.
Meanwhile efforts to trace the four
numbers of the Maryland license plate
| or the car used by Riedel's slayer have
| been virtually abandoned. Since two of
| the numerals are missing, it is pointed
out. definite check-up Of the ownership
OF the mystery machine is virtually i'm
possible.
Witnesses Threatened.
Telephone threats to keep your
mouth shut were received yesterday
| by three witnesses in the Riedel case
according to Inspector Burke, Every
effort is being made to protect those
| ftofr
the murder, ne added.
| Meanwhile, new witness has entered
the case, Burke said. :.
"A young woman came to me yestar-
| day" he explained, and told me she
| was passing the bakery in an automo-
! bile at the time of the shooting. AL
| though she actually saw the slaving
she was so frightened she was unable
to give me a detailed description of the
| gunman.
| The partial description she gave
however, tallies with that given by
other witnesses, and we feel We have
| pretty definite idea of what the gun
man looks like. The woman became
| frightened and drove away bat de-
| clded to communicate with me later "
| The inspector refused to reveal the
witness identity.
Police admittedly are leaning TOW ,rd
| the theory that the shootingS were
| perpetrated by homicidal maniac.
This theory is bolstered. Burke said.
| by the fact that the Riedel case is the
only one in which anything even re-
| motely resembling a motive has been
| uncovered.
The victims of the other shootings-
Backus; Helen Andrews, 18, OF 58ll
Sixth street, and Doris Beall. l6. of
|
| upon without any apparent reason. No
| attempt was made to rob any of them,
and the gunmen did not speak to any
of them
In the Riedel case robbery is consid-
| cred a possible motive, though there is
no positive evidence that the baker was
shot during hold-up.
Riedel was shot at about the time he
usually closed his store. Hence the fact
his cash register was open does not
necessarily indicate robbery, as he may
| have been in the act of cleaning out
the drawer when the gunman entered,
He had s46 in his pockets, and the
gunman did not disturb it.
The possibility he was killed during
| a hold-up was indicated, however, by
| the fact that he apparently went down
| fighting. Residents OF the neighbor-
hood say he often declared he never
would submit to a bandit.
| In all the ShootingS, Inspector Burke
! pointed out, .32-caliber, copper jack
eted bullets we're used. As for the Ii
cense numbers-Backus said the first
| three numerals of the tag on the black
sedan from which he was fired upon
were 900, while the first four numerals
of the marker on the black sedan used
| by RiedelS slayer were 209-3. Backus,
in his pain and excitement, easily could
have transposed the "9" and the 20"
Will Examine Bullets.
Microscopic examinations of the bull
lets will be made today by Lieut.. John
H. Fowler, police ballistics expert
Lieut. Fowler has declared the bullet
which struck BackuS and one Of the
two which hit Miss Andrews were of
the same manufacture and we're fired
from guns Of the same type.
Although BackuS and Riedel knew
each other quite well, their relations
were only those of storekeeper and
customer, Inspector Burke said. Nor
have the police unearthed any evl-
dence indicating Backus and Riedel
were acquainted with Miss Andrews or
Miss Beall he added.
While two men are known to have
| been in the black sedan from which the
girls were fired upon, Backus saw only
one in the machine from which he
was shot, and witnesses in the Riedel
case have been unable to agree on the
number involved in the Staying
Some of the witnesses said man
waited in the automobile while the gun
man entered the bakery, but others de-
clared the car was unoccupied 1t is
definitely known, however, that the
actual killing was the work OF one man.
Two Descriptions Tally.
Police still are giving some attention
to the theory Riedel may have been
murdered by the goggled bandit who
held up and robbed David T1evsky in
his store at 1909 Wisconsin avenue.
The robbers description tallieS with
! that of Riedels slayer, and both men
wore goggles The hold-up occurred a
short time before Riedel was killed.
Ffngerprints on a pair Of goggles
found in Chevy Chase yesterday are
being examined by Sergt Fred Sand
burg. police Bertillon expert. The gog-
giles were said by Tievsky to be similar
to those worn by the man who robbed
him.
Funeral services for Riedel will be
held at 10am. Wednesday at his home,
32O9 Adams Mill road, Burial will be
IN Prospect Hill cemetery. he Is SUI
vived bv his widow, Mrs. Sophie Riedel,
and two daughters, Wilma and Mar
guerite.
Backus. who has been fighting for
life in Emergency Hospital, is said to
be improved He was shot in the back.
Bandits Hold Up Two.
While police squads secured the
streets last night in an effort 70 capture
the gunman three youthful bandits in
vaded the heavily patrolled Northwest
section and. at the point OF gun, rob-
| bed a merchant of SIS Al almost the
same hour an armed pair held up
couple in the Northeast section, but
failed to obtain any cash.
As he turned to serve drinks that
three youths had ordered at his delica-
| lessen, at 1905 Fourteenth street Isadore
Kastin was confronted with a drawn
pistol and a demand for money, he told