Evening star., 1940-03-16
Bandit Shoots
Collector and
.F|ees With $700
William Gladstone, Al,
Wounded in HoIdup
At Traffic Light

Wounded in HoIdup
At Traffic Light
William E. Gladstone. Al years old,
q collector for the THYME Bottling
Co., was shot early this afternoon
in a stop-light holdup near New
York avenue and Bladensburg road
NE.
Two robbers escaped with about
500 in cash and checks, police said.
Gladstone, despite his wound,
managed to drive his automobile
five blocks to South Dakota avenue,
where he collapsed as he attempted
to get out at service station. James
Stevens. liquor store proprietor,
rushed him to Sibley Hospital, where
an emergency operation was ordered
to remove q bullet from his alb
domen.
According to police, Mr.. Gladstone
had stopped his automobile at red
light on Bladensburg road. One Of
the holdup men-a tall white man
jumped In the car, put a pistol
against the driver and ordered him
to hand over the money. Mr.. Glad
stone grabbed at the gun and in
the struggle was shot.
The police today announced the
arrest of a number of holdup and
theft suspects.
Solution Of two cases, which in
volved loot valued at s25,0O0, was
announced at police headquarters by
detectives.
In one case, colored maid, Mary
McCorrie Mann. 26, of the 900 block
of @ street NV, was charged with
grand larceny in connection with the
theft of 5000 worth of jewelry po-
| lice said the woman had stolen over
a period of several weeks from the
| apartment of Col and Mrs. Glenn
S. Smith at the Broadmoor Hotel,
1901 Connecticut avenue NV.
Col. Smith, who works in the Geo.
logical Survey in the Interior De-
partment, first reported that some
Of the jewelry was missing in De-
cember. More disappeared in ensuing
weeks. The detectives investigating
the case learned that at the same
time small sums of money had been
disappearing from coin bank in the
apartment.
They investigated and IN searching
the maids home found the jewels
hidden in a rat hole in closet.
Five Men Arrested.
The second case brought the ar
rest of five colored men by Detec-
tive Sergts. Thomas Sweeney and
Michael Mahaney. The men were
charged with stealing and disposing
of $4,000 worth of imported lace
and linen.
| The goods were stolen from . car
owned by Fouad A. Zraick, q New
York importer, on December Is
Police said that they had recovered
about 81 900 worth of lace and Lad
hopes of finding at least part of
the rest of the loot.
Three colored men were caught
red-handed during the night by po-
lice working on the special night pa
troll.
Pvts. j, E. Ashe and E. E. Helmes,
patrolling their beat near Seventh
and M streets NV, trapped two Of
the men in the act of burglarizing
a dry-cleaning establishment at 1901
Seventh street NV.
Sergt. T. M. Poland. with Pvts. C..
E. Davis and j. D. Hall, picked up
another colored man near q service
station at Fairview and New York
avenues NE. The man admitted he
was waiting to hold up the station
and police recovered a pistol he had
thrown away when he saw them ap-
preaching.
Admits Robbing Station.
Under questioning, the man ad-
mitted robbing the station on Feb
ruary II and gave police the names
of two other colored men who had
participated in other robberies with
him. The men were arrested and
faced questioning today.
Headquarters detectives announced
they had disproved the story Of q
20-year-old colored boy who had
confessed a murder-in an effort to
avoid being connected with q bur-
glary.
The youth is Andrew Ashton, who
Is held at the District Jail on q
HOUSEKEEPING charge. He was ar
rested about week ago for in
vestigation and surprised police by
admitting participation in the hold
up-slaying of Herman Sirkis. North
east liquor store proprietor.
He said he had been the lookout
man for the two robbers VINO en-
tered the store and shot Mr.. Sirkis
Police believed his story until he
started to describe in detail the
conversation between Mr.. Sirkis and
; the robbers.
Police could not get an explana-
, ton Of how he had heard this con-
versation-if he had been standing
outside the store as q lookout. He
admitted the confession was q hoax
and police then linked him to q
minor housebreaking.