Evening star., 1942-02-24
Boiling Soldier
Admits KiIIinq
Taxi Driver
Theft of Service
Revolver Leads
To Arrest

DlSCOVcTy Oh u SCOlcIl SCIt1CC IC'
volver in the barracks bag Of 20
year-old enlisted man at Boiling
Field led yesterday to the arrest o.
the soldier only few hours aftel
the Staying Of cab driver al
Eleventh and East Capitol streets.
Police said the soldier, John Rath.
bun, who has been in the Army 9
year and once spent more than two
years in a Georgia prison camp, hao
signed a confession.
The cab driver, Conrad Steele, 36
of 4111z Fifth street NE, was NOR
tally wounded at 9:05 am. with q
.45-caIber service revolver. The
soldier was in the custody of the po.
lice at 4:30 pm.
Discovery of the service revolver
IN Rathbun's barracks bag was the
one lucky break the police got. The
rest was hard work. Immediately
after the shooting, all detectives
started cruising in scout cars, aided
by eyewitness descriptions of the
slayer. Some detectives cruised
nearby counties looking for hitch
mixers in uniform.
Gun Missing From Rack.
Making a check of nearby camps,
detectives went to Boiling Field.
From a gun rack in one of the bar
racks one revolver was missing.
After a further check the gun
turned up in Rathbun's barracks
bag. Rathbun, the records showed,
was out on a pass good from 6 am.
yesterday until am. today.
Meanwhile detectives tracked
down a cab driver who said he had
picked up a soldier answering the
same description as the one wanted
by police and taken him to Boiling
Field. Witnesses had seen soldier
jump into cab and lookout had
gone out for that cab driver.
Accompanied by Michael Joel of
New York, whose car had been
commandeered by the soldier imme-
diately after the shooting, Detec-
tive 1t. Clyde N. Strange and De-
tective Sergt. E. E. Scott headed
for Boiling Field. Near the en-
trance, they spotted two soldiers,
one of whom Mr.. Joel said looked
like the man they wanted. Mr..
Joel could not positively identify
the suspect, but Sergt. Scott took
his name anyhow.
At Boiling Field the detectives
were informed by Capt. Robert Bar
rett, assistant chief of detectives,
that the missing revolver had been
found. The name of the man in
whose bag it had been found was
the same as the man who had been
questioned a few minutes earlier.
Soldier Signs Confession.
About 40 soldiers set out with the
detectives to scour the city, while
several Army officials rode with
Capt. Barrett. At Ninth and E
streets NV, Rathbun was found
standing with his soldier friend on
the street corner. The soldier was
brought to police headquarters
where, police said, he signed a con-
fession.
According to police accounts OF
Rathbun's statement the soldier
was lying on the cot in his tent
Sunday night when he noticed a
revolver which a guard had hung
up inside the tent. The pistol, he
recalled, was similar to one with
which a deputy warden had beat
him when the youth, convicted on
a 1ousebreaking charge, was serving
time with a Georgia chain gang.
His head filled with thoughts Of
revenge and he snatched the pistol
with a vague idea OF going after
the deputy warden. He applied Tor
a pass and early in the morning left
the field with some fellow soldiers
who gave him lift to the Capitol.
There he hailed cab-Mr. Steele S
and directed the driver to take
him back to Boiling Field. He didn't
explain why he had given that order.
On Eleventh street, he counter
manded the order and wanted to
20 back to town again.
Started Twirling Gun.
When he had left the camp, he
carried the gun in an overcoat
pocket and sitting in the cab, ne
took it out and started twrling 1t.
He contends he didn't do or say
ANYTHING to the cab driver-just
sat there lingering the gun.
He noticed the cab driver watch
ING him from the front mirror
After he countermanded the order
the driver, apparently could stand
the strain no longer and jumped
from the cab, shouting, according
to eyewitnesses, Catch that guy
This is a holdup."
The soldier leveled his gun and
fired twice. One of the bullets
pierced Mr.. Steele's back and came
out through his left lung. Mr..
Steele was pronounced dead on ar
rival at Casualty Hospital.
Meanwhile, the soldier jumped on
the running board of Mr.. Joels
car, pointed the revolver at him
and shouted, Get going, drive
faster. In case you want to know
I Just killed back there. >
When the soldier left the car
Mr.. Joel drove on to his Office fol
his first day of work with the
Office of Production Management
and notified police.
The inquest into the death of Mr.
Steele, who is the father of two
boys, will be held tomorrow al
1880 am.