Evening star., 1954-09-29
Beard Leaned
TO $100 Bills,
Bank Aide Says
Teller Testifies to
Frequent Visits With
Sacks Full of Cash
BY Jack Jones'
Stor Sfoff Corresponden,

Sfor Sfoft Correspondent
BALTIMORE, Sept. 2s.-sam
Boards penchant for $l00 bills
was given a through airing in
Federal Court yesterday by a
petite bank teller. who said the
Washington gambler was such a
regular visitor at her window
that he called her by her nick
name. "Offie"
Miss Lorene Offenbacher Of
l52-D Colony road. Silver Spring
Mr.. head teller at Bank of Com
merce and Savings, said Beard
called at her window because I
handled most of the large bills.
and that's what he wanted"
Her testimony came during
Boards trial on charges of evad-
ing SIG million in income taxes
in 1914. 1916 and 1947.
She was called as a witness
as the Government sought to
prove that Beard failed to report
large earnings from what United
States Attorney George Cochran
Doub indicated was a Nation
wide gambling empire.
Sacks Full of Money.
Miss Offenbacher said the
short. chunky gambler came to
the bank two or three times a
week from 1914 through 1947.
bringing a sack full of money
on each visit. He carried cash
and checks in canvas bags or in
tan grocery sacks, she said, and
changed it for large bills, usually
500 bills
All amounts above $1,000 in
such transactions, Miss Offen-
bacher said. were recorded on
special forms and sent to the
Government in line with a
presidential directive to banks in
l945. Voluminous records show
ing such transactions by Beard
were submitted as evidence.
The Government also pre-
sented to the jury-over objec-
tions by Defense Attorneys
Thomas j. Kenney and Michael
Gould-a welter of records such
as deposit slips, savings ac-
count and checking account rec
ords and listing of Boards vis-
its to his safety deposit box.
Ia Million Checks.
Microfllm records of nearly
IA million out-of town checks
that passed through the Lin
coin National Bank at Washing
ton were wheeled into the court
room.
In that maze of microflm, the
Government contends, are some
l,7OO checks. many of which
poured into Boards gambling
business from $50 cities in SO
States.
Robert E. Kendrick, jr, con-
troller at the Bank of Com
merce and Savings, testified
about Boards various accounts
at that bank. Under cross
ination, he said a notation, Hold
for Mr.. Owens" on some of the
records referred to Frank Owens,
director of the bank and a
real estate man who once helped
keep Boards accounts.
Earlier. as the trial got under
way, Mr.. Doub charged that all
of Boards income from his ma
tlonal gambling business was
not reported to the Government
at income tax time.
He said Beard operated this
business from his secondhand
store on lower Ninth street NV.
and from the 37O0 block of Bla-
denSburg road, Colmar Manor
the address of the former State
Wide Sports News Distributors.
a distributor of race track results.
Calls Figures Bizarre"
Mr.. Gould termed the Govern
ment's figures on income bizarre,
fantastic and incredible" and
challenged the Government to
prove that all of Boards trans
actions represented income.
Mr.. Gould said the bizarre
nature of the trial would become
more apparent when "the testi-
mony of a dead man" is pre-
sented. He referred to Benjamin
who died after giving q
deposition in the Beard case.
Earlier proceedings in the case
showed that Mr.. Fields testified
that Beard cashed 100000 in
checks for him as a convenience
from 1914 through 1947.
Mr.. Doub planned to call Gov
tax agents today to
testify about their investigation
of Boards income.
Among yesterdays spectators
1T the trial was Charles E. Ford,
Washington trial lawyer, who has
represented Washington gamblers
n various cases. Mr.. Ford in
sisted he was there merely as
ipectator.