The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1940-03-28
Two Arrests
Solve Series
OF Robberiies
WPA WATCHMAN AND
FARMLAND ADMIT
MANY CRIMES

Oil station burglarieS in four coun-
ties was confessed in Redwood
Falls Wednesday by Cecil Sheets,
%, Redwood Falls WPA worker
and Arthur Define, &c, Springfield
farmer.
Their arrest Tuesday followed
a morning search of the Sheets
home in the northeast district of
Redwood Falls by Deputy Sheriff
Harry Beatty and Chief c. E.
Johnson and Thomas Arnett Jr.
Of the Redwood Falls police de-
partment.
They found a radio stolen in q
break-in at the Ole Urbom Gil sta
ton in Delhi February %, 1899.
That discovery climaXed more
than a year of work by the coun-
ty sheriff's office and city police
department on string of striking
ly similar theftS in this territory
in 1888 and 1899.
BurglarieS of the Phillips &c,
Webb and Standard Oil stations
On East Bridge street in Redwood
Falls on the same night early in
1888 and lCne job at the Birch
Coulee Inn on the west edge of
Franklin were admitted by Sheets.
Loot Always Small
Together the two men robbed
the Webb oil station at Spring
field, the pool hall, Log Cabin
service station and lumber yard at
Vesta, the Urbom station at Delhi,
the Draeger oil station at North
Redwood, a saloon at Golden
twice, pool hall at Sanborn, 4
tavern at Garvin, the Webb oil
station at Tracy and made a sec
ond raid on the Birch Coulee Inn
A few dollars worth of nickels
from pinball or slot machines, a
few cartons of cigarets, a few bars
of candy or few dollar in change
from cash registers were the
usual loot. They never got more
than SIS in place, they said.
They quit the burglaries about
a year ago, they testified, after
Sheets was picked up for ques-
tioning on the Garvin job by a
Lyon county deputy sheriff and
then released.
Taken before Judge Clifford
James Wednesday afternoon, they
waived preliminary examination
and were bound over to district
court, indicating that they wanted
to plead guilty there and "get it
over with as soon as possible"
Judge James set their bonds at
$4,000 apiece and they were re-
turned to jail. A district judge is
expected here within a few days
to conduct their hearings.
Stories Conflict
The charge against them is Sec
ond degree grand larceny in con-
nection with the radio theft. the
springboard from which officials
secured solution of all the crimes.
1t was hard work and question:
ing occupied two afternoons, at
the Jail and at County Attorney
Tom Reeds office.
Sheets said he got the radio
from DEFINE as a wedding present
and DEFINE told the sheriff and
county attorney that he had won
it on a punchboard about eight
years ago. AS the grilling contin-
ued, the punchboard tale changed
and by Wednesday afternoon, the
two men were telling the straight
story of its theft.
They had been at Wabasso, they
said, then went to Delhi where
they took the radio and stole a
fill of gas. At North Redwood the
same night they stole enough gas
tc replenish that used on the trip
from Delhi and then broke into
the oil station proper but did not
take anything.
The Webb oil station burglary
in Springfield, their first one to-
gether, occurred early in 1888,
they said. They broke into the
Birch Coulee Inn in January or
February of 1889 and the rest of
the raids followed at one, two or
three week intervals.
They generally parked the car
in an alley, opened tn back door
with a wrecking bar and broke any
money machines in the establish
mentS.
Sheets has been working as
night Waterman on the Ramsey
state park WPA and Define lives
on farm near Springfield. Their
association began about four years
ago when Sheets was employed on
the Define farm.