Evening star., 1952-06-29
Former Police Heads
Unexplained Spending
Is Hit in Report
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- s Us NVHU'
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testimony Of James and Eva
lima Roberts could have been
fabricated.
In June 1850 while Roberts
was free on bond. he called
Carper and told the latter that
he needed money to pay his
lawyer. A meeting was arranged,
and Carper gave him $500 in
cash. A few weeks later Carper
gave him another hundred
dollars.
When Roberts went to jail in
the fall Of 1949, his business
1 was largely taken over by
Randolph Catfish" Turner.
Another peddler, Daniel S. Cole,
testified that his group. distrib-
uting for Emmanuel Brous-
sard, operated in 1850 and 1851.
also by direct arrangement with
1t. Carper. And other sellers
seem to have been carrying on
unmolested.
In March. 1851 Federal agents
organized a mass raid which
brought in many of the ped
dlers. Immediately thereafter,
when some were freed and some
were out on bond with indict-
ments pending against them. 1t.
Carper sought out one of
Turner's men, Herbert w.
"Bucklejaws" johnson, and Or
dered him to have Turner come
to Johnson'S apartment for a
meeting with Carper the follow
ing night. Johnson arranged
this meeting and learned after
wards from Turner that Carper
had talked about protection,
fixing a price Of $500 per month
and demanding that peddlers in
Turner's group furnish q list Of
names and places Of business so
that Carper could look out for
them.
Carper Gets List.
A meeting was held a few days
later at Turner's house, attended
by johnson, Leon James, Eddie
Atkins Leonard Dixon and
Turner. With some reluctance,
the group agreed to submit the
list to Carper, and divided the
protection payments on the basis
of $50 from johnson, James
(who employed Dixon). and At
kins, and $120 from Turner,
payable on the first Of each
month.
This agreement continued
from the spring Of 1851 until
the mass raids in November of
that year. Payments were made
to Carper at Johnson's apart
ment on two occasions, and
once in his presence, by Turner.
Carper also came personally,
once during the summer. to
warn Johnson that the premises
he was using for the sale of
narcotics had been the subject
of a complaint and that it was
unsafe for johnson to continue
operating there. Johnson's
friend, Nellie Leach. also testi-
fed as to the payoff arrange
ment and recalled seeing john
son give Turner the agreed $50
on a number of occasions. Dixon
also stated that he had seen
Carper visit Turner's home on
two occasions during this pc
riod.
Carper Warns of Raid.
Toward the end Of the sum-
mer of 1851. Carper left WASH
tngton on his vacation and
warned Turner and his group to
suspend operations. Turner COM
piled. Carper also warned the
group that new undercover men,
operating from the bureau Office
in Baltimore, were in town, and
that plans were being laid for a
mass raid, scheduled for No
vember. Despite his warning,
when the raid took place most
of Carper's proteges in this
group were rounded up.
Most of the witnesses who un-
folded these two episodes CEN
tering around Roberts and the
Turner group were first heard
by the subcommittee in execu-
tive session in March, 1852 in
order to minimize the possibility
of collusion among them as to
their testimony. The secret Of
their disclosures was well kept
until the public hearing in
March, so that when Carper ap-
peared, on March II, he ex-
planned that the sharp decline
in narcotics arrests from 1947
to 1949 (the Roberts era) was
due to his own efficiency. At
the end of the examination
about his personal finances and
periodic cash deposits, he plead
ed illness and loss of memory,
and begged for a continuance to
make a personal investigation
of the details about which I was
questioned" Although he prom
ised to return, and made re-
peated public statement that he
was going to clear himself, he
never faced the subcommittee
again. Both Carper and Taylor
have subsequently been indicted
for conspiring to violate the
narcotics laws, and for accept
ing bribes.
InfOrmer Is Engaged.
Other facts about his conduct
in Office also came to light. In
the spring of 1851 Carper sent
an emissary to see Daniel Cole.
an addict and peddler who was
then in prison, to see If Cole
would act as an informer. Cole
agreed and was released shortly
thereafter. He soon became
known as an informer, and had
difficulty buyinp drugs to feed