Evening star., 1940-02-28
Brown Calls
Conference on
Crime Wave
Window Of JeweIry
Store Broken;
Grocery Roided

Police captains and inspectors
were to confer with Supt. Ernest
w. Brown today on methods Of
checking q wave Of robberies which
has swept the city in the wake Of
bitter winter weather.
Maj. Brown meanwhile assigned
extra details OF officers to patrol
the second and 18th precincts, In
which most of the robberies, house.
breakings and thefts have occurred
In recent weeks. The police chief
said an increase of such crime
usually followed a protracted spell
Of cold weather.
For the third time since the first
OF this year, show window was
smashed at Castleberg's jewelry
store at 1904 F street NV. early
today. A thief threw a brick
through the plate glass about am.
and snatched half a dozen watches.
He disappeared before police arrived
IN response to an electric burglar
alarm.
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While police sought two colored
holdup men who shot to death the
proprietor Of q liquor store in the
1900 block Of Deane avenue NE.
Monday night. four colored robbers
last night raided the grocery store
OF Mr.. and Mrs. William Grouse at
3l5 @ street NV. and escaped with
500.
Mr.. Grouse said the first man
jumped over the counter and pinned
his arms behind his back while an
accomplice covered the store with
revolver. Two other men, he said,
emptled the cash register, and the
man holding him took wallet from
his pocket. The cash register con-
tanned $40 and the wallet, $50.
The robbers, all of whom ap-
peared to be under 20 years of age,
fed north on New Jersey avenue
NV, 1t was said.
Police still sought the colored
holdup men who shot Herman
Siras, former Baltimore policeman,
through the heart Monday night
after robbing his liquor store. Mr.,
Sirkis had f1ered several shots at his
assailants, and officers said 1t was
possible one Of his bullets took
effect.
Maj. Brown announced the Po-
lice Department had doubled the
500 it offered yesterday for in
formation leading to the arrest and
conviction of the gunmen who killed
Mr.. Sirkis.
A wholesale liquor dealer has
! offered an additional reward of
500. and the total now is $500.
Coin Box Stolen.
Maj. Brown originally called TO-
days meeting Of police ofacials to
consider tranic problems and hear
report from the two trafiic division
officers just back from attending the
Traffic Institute at Northwestern
University. The police chief said,
however, that the meeting would
be occupied for the most part with
ways and means of putting down
banditry.
Washington usually is plagued at
this time of year, especially after
continued cold weather, with petty
criminals. many of whom are tram
sients.. Detectives said the closing
down of public works jobs because
OF bad weather also contributed to
the seasonal crime wave.
A number of lesser housebreak.
ings and purse-snatchings were
reported last night and this morn
ing, along with thefts from parked
automobiles. Thieves stole the coin
deposit box Of a parking meter at
Seventh and E streets NV. last
night, police said.
A young white man held up AL.
media Cain, a colored maid at 1912
Eighteenth street NV, yesterday
afternoon and escaped with $13.
The bandit entered on the pretext
of renting q room and offered q
$40 bill in payment of q deposit.
The gunman held to the bill and
fed with the money the maid pro-
duced for change, police were told.
Thieves Take Photographs.
Police are seeking two nickle-in-
the-slot monographs and quantity
Of haberdashery.
The automatic monographs, VAL
ued at $3.50 each, were stolen from
two stores where they had been
placed for the convenience of music
loving patrons. Two men dressed In
gray uniforms called for the ma
chimes. explaining they represented
the owner, and drove OF with them