Evening star., 1948-03-10

Washington detectives said Ferst
had been identified in the $500
holdup of a payroll messenger at
the Darby Printing Co., 2400 block
of Douglas street NE, on December
10, and the $1,000 robbery of the
Acme grocery, 1900 block of F street
NE, on September 81.
Police said strong evidence also
points to Fierst's completely in the
$3.50 robbery of Safeway store at
Eighth and r streets NE. on Sep
tember 10, and holdup of the Miss
America candy store in the 1900
block of @ street NV. on the same
date.
Two employers Of the Haynes
Lithograph Co. Of Silver Spring
who were forced into the trunk
Of a car during sensational $500
payroll robbery December II, went
to Baltimore today in an effort to
identify Fierst. ....
He also was being questioned by
Baltimore police about other rob-
berries and the murder of Peter J.
lingo, q war veteran, last July.
Reconstruct Staying.
Reconstructing the night of vio-
lence when Lewis paid the extreme
penalty for jittery nerves, police said
this was the story they cleaned from
Fierst:
On the night of January Is Fierst,
Lewis and an unnamed man had
planned to hold up the Rockaway
Towers, a tavern near Baltimore on
the Washington road.
In planning the holdup, Lewis
had obtained employment at the
tavern and thoroughly "cased" 1t
for quick robbery.
With Fierst driving and the un-
named man in the front seat, they
picked up Lewis, who sat alone in
the back seat.
. Near the tavern, Fierst noticed a
car following closely and perhaps
became suspicious, fearing Lewis
had tipped of the tavern OF the
holdup. He turned of the highway
to a lonely road and accused Lewis
of going soft"
{ Police believe that LeWiS, either
fearing he was marked fot death
or enraged because he was suspeot-
ed, opened fire.
Bore Scars Of Bullet Wounds.
When he was arrested Monday,
Fierst showed the scars OF three
bullet wounds, and police think they
were inflicted during the January
gun battle
In the answering shots, Lewis was
mortally wounded. His body was
dragged into some bushes at the
side Of the road and there 1t lay
until yesterday, when two Baltimore
newspapermen stumbled across it.
The reporters, Wilson Aud and
Thomas Hughes of the News-Post,
had learned that police were search
ing for Lewis body and hoped to
contact them at the scene.
Found 60 Feet From Road.
Instead, they arrived before the
police, and took it upon themselves
to beat the bushes. About 60 feet
of Whisky Bottom road they came
upon the body, badly decomposed
and the head almost severed by
gunfire.
Fierst's arrest ended a two-month
search by the FBI and Washington
and Baltimore police
For days they had been watching
a garage in the vicinity of Orleans
street and Lakewood avenue in Bal
timore. Monday Fierst showed up
and was arrested as he entered a
car. On the front seat were what
appeared to be blood stains. Fierst
had three wounds on his face, neck
and shoulder, apparently recently
inflicted.
Entering the garage they had
been watching, police found a small
arsenal consisting of an MI Army
rife and ammunition, several hand
cuffs, a blackjack, burglars jimmy
and stolen license plates.
Convicted in 1899.
Fierst. also known as Little
Make was convicted in the So, 400
robbery of the Tompkins Construc-
ton Co. in 1899 Sentenced to the
Atlanta Penitentiary for IL years. he
was released on parole July /, l947.
A lookout for Ferst was broadcast
after the Darby Printing Co. payroll
robbery of December 10. Two days
before that, the Hayes Lithograph
Co. payroll holdup occurred in Silver
Spring.
Phillip z. Barnes. jr., an account
ant, and Charles E. Ebbecke, sales
man for the company, had just re-
turned to the plant with the payroll
when they were accosted by two
men. They were forced to drive to
a lonely point of the East-West
highway and then locked into the
cars trunk.
They managed to escape by knock
ing out section of plywood between
the trunk and the rear seat section
and crawling through the opening.