The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-08-22
GUARD BEATEN.
SAFES LOOTED
AT CITY PLANT
o5- Year-0Id Waterman ir
Critical Condition After
Brutal SIugging.
TOTAL LOOT UNKNOWN
Four Strong Boxes Smashed
at HoIComb- Hoke
Building.

Icy ing tAAC OO-llldll SPCCld1 dilll-
safe cracker squad of the police
force, yeggs early today beat Ed
Jordan, IS, night Waterman, into
Inconsistencies with a piece of two
by-four lumber and broke four safes
in the Holcomb g. Hoke building,
1545 Van Buren-st.
At City Hospital, where Mr.. Jor-
dan was rushed, it was said he is
in critical condition and may not
live. He is unable to give any de-
tails of the attack, how many as
sailants were involved, or their ap-
PearanceS. physicians said, and they
refused to let police question him
because of his condition.
The attack occurred between 100
and 2:30. He was found at a. m.
When Mr.. Jordan failed to
punch the clock at 2:15, a special
policeman from the American Dis
trict Telegraph Co. of Indiana
rushed to the building and found
him on the first floor, attempting
to unite his feet, bound by the in
truders.
SIedge Hammers Used
The special policeman, Chester
StergeOn, said Mr.. Jordan was too
dazed to answer any questions. His
head, he said, was covered with
bumps and was bloody where the
sharp edges of the two-by-four had
pierced the skin.
Further investigation disclosed to
Mr.. Stergeon that an iron Office
safe in the downstairs Office of Hol-
colmb & Hoke had been smashed
with sledge hammers and an
amount of money, computed by
company officers to be about $50
was taken.
A wall safe, that had not been
locked, was battered and can not
be opened by company officers. In
it are records only.
Smash Two More Safes
The yeggs proceeded upstairs to
the j. 1. Holcomb Mig. Co., cor
nected by a hallway and stairw 4
and there smashed two six-foot
safes with sledge hammer and
punches. They got no money but
scattered Office records and stamps
around the floor.
When the alarm was received at
the police station, two squads of
cruising police answered, as well
as Detectives Berl Dillehey and Ed
Dugan. Some one made a written
report of what had happened and
filed it, without signatures.
Detective Chief Fred Simon said
Detectives Dillehey and Dugan had
made no written report. but that
they probably made an oral re-
port to Lieut.. Roy Pope. Lieut..
Pope said it was his detectives who
made out the unsigned report.
That report was dated at $50
a m. Lieut.. Pope said the detectives
stayed on the job and carried
through on the case until they were
relieved
However, when newsmen arrived
at 7:45 at the Holcomb 81 Hoke
building. the detectives were not
there. No police were on the scene
until 8:45 when, five and three
quarter hours after the crime had
been discovered, Detectives Alfred
/ Schulz and Albert Romeril arr. yed
with Lieut. Bert Perrott.
No Fingerprints Found
Lieut.. Perrott was the first Bcr-
+ To "a r,f
the crime and he reported that
there were a couple of smesred
fingerprints that won't help us" He
took one picture, part of one
print
Meantime a report dated at 6.l2
a. m, signed by Patrolmen Francis
Gootee and Claude E. Reidenbauch,
and filed at the station said that
the two patrolmen had been sent
to a dump two blocks away from
the Holcomb & Hoke Co., where
Max Mullins, a citizen, showed them
discarded Holcomb e. Hoke papers
and stamps.
The patrolmen brought these to
headquarters and reported to the
uniformed branch of the service
about the incident. More than en-
hour later another uniformed branch
report was filed saying that after
the other patrolmen had been at
the dump. 8-year-old Arnold
younger had found more stamps
and strong box evidently discard
ed by the yeggs at the same dump.
These also we're brought into the
station. Lieut. Pope. asked to ex-
plain how two patrolmen could
search a dump and miss a strong
box and stamps that an s-year-old
boy later found. said that ANY one
could search a dump and miss
something"