Evening star., 1953-07-02
11FaceHedriing
July II in Big
Numbers Raid
Top Men Escape
Arrest in 81 Million
Syndicate Roundup

Arrest IN ~ Million
Syndicate Roundup
Eleven persons rounded up in
one OF Washington's biggest num-
bers raids in years will face
hearings July 81, United States
Commissioner Cyril S. Lawrence
announced today.
In all, police raiders picked up
IL persons yesterday, but one of
them was charged with liquor law
violations. All are colored. Police
said they are members of the old
est and largest gambling ring in
Washington.
Morals Squad detectives said
the IL were tied in with a gam
bling syndicate doing an esti-
mated 81 million business an
nually.
Missed Top Men,
But the raiders admitted they
missed all of the top" men in
the ring. It was literally a case
of picking the suspects off their
own tenterhookS, police said.
They quoted some of those ar
rested as saying the city's gambl-
ing fraternity is in a nervous"
and highly mobile state because
Of stepped-up police activity.
None Of those under arrest had
Federal gambling tax stamps,
police said.
In five different raids, in
Guiding one on an automobile,
police conf1scated a considerable
amount of cash and several
thousand dollars worth of num-
bers slips, as well as a quantity
of unused numbers books. Much
Of the cash and many of the slips
were found in cloth bank sacks.
If those arrested are convicted,
police said. this property, as we'll
as the car, will become Federal
property.
Caps Months Investigation.
Those arrested in the raids,
which eliminated q month of
investigation by undercover men,
were all colored. They were:
Louis H. Singleton, A, of the
300 block Westminster street
NV, arrested in a candle
shop" in the TOO block of S
street NV, and charged with
operating lottery; Isaac Welsh.
As, of the 1900 block Kalorama
road NV. arrested in the car at
South Capitol and Atlantic
streets Sc. and charged with
operating a lottery, and also
named by police as a head
man: his wife, Alice C. Welsh,
IS. charged with operating a
lottery; Joseph r. Hurd. 10. of
the 2100 block Second street
NV. and Daniel j. Roderiquis,
SO, of the 3100 block Fourteenth
street NE, also in the car and
similarly charged.
Others arrested were George
Humphrey, %, of the 1900 block
Sixth street NV, arrested in
Marion court NV, and charged
with operating a lottery; Thomas
R. Christmas, so, of the 600
block Marion court NV,
charged with keeping untaxed
whisky without a license; Lee
c. Fuller, %, same address. ar
rested in the 1000 block Seventh
street NV, and charged with
operating a lottery and possess
ing untaxed whisky; Odie Foun-
tain, SO, of the $500 block Penn
Sylvania avenue Sc, arrested in
the 1900 block of First street
NV, and charged with oper-
ating a lottery; Dorothy Cassa-
way, 38, of the 700 block S street
NV, arrested in the basement
of the candle shop and charged
with operating a lottery.
Also Nathanial j. Williams,
So, of the 900 block Fifth street
NV, arrested on the premises
and charged with operating a
lottery; and Homer P. Schey.
"a, of the 900 block Fifth street
NV, charged with operating
lottery.
Breakdown in MidafternOon.
The raids started shortly after
3 pm. and the arresting officers
carried commissioners war
rants. Welsh was the first man
taken into custody. The route
the car was to take was known
to the police, they said. The
group in the car, police added,
were en- route to Maryland to
contact a syndicate banker when
they were arrested.
After this raid, police broke
up into three parties. One went
to Welsh'S home, and the other
two conducted the remaining
raids. Number slips worth 81 500
were taken at Welsh's home, as
was about 5000 in coins. and
the unused numbers books.
The tip-off to police about the
gambling operations came, they
said. when they found numbers
plays we're being taken in Marion
Court. Police said one of their
undercover men purchased
whisky and made plays there.
The raids were led by Capt.
Irwin H. limbaugh, head of the
Morals Squad. Other raiding
officers were 1t. Todd Thoman,
and Sergts. Frank Breazeale
and Scott Meyer.