St. Louis Post-Dispatch
December 9, 1901

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4 - . 2: 4 = By rd 4 gg. lle <a ' . ; ‘ Tc ; POLICE BALKED 3 A GIGANTIC & i = | —CHIEF KIELY. Raid on Safe Blowers Pre- vented Many Crimes He Says. CONGRATULATES DETECTIVES DESMOND LAYS EVIDENCE BE- FORE THE GRANDJURY. It Is Already Proved That Members of the Gang Captured in Chouteau Avenue House Engaged in Recent Burglaries. Chief of Detectives Desmond laid before the grandjury Monday morning evidence secured by his department against the nine o HOUSE WHERE GANG WASCAPTURED oe tel EN 3 r NCTE | Uy iA thf Yj Uf si += ) ji Ul _— si lai NNT | ty, eit, {N Na _ . -_—— TT HH) ' _ ia a. |! ian 4 | ~ — a = The house in which the gang of safe-blowers was surprised Saturday night Is The men were in the rear room on the first floor. There are two stories, the second being occupied by another family. The room used for manufacturing the tools also served gs a kitchen for Mike Schoenen and at 2134 Chouteau avenue. his wife, who used the front portion of: ! _ DINING ROOM TABAE] * BED Qa o }-——_4 SIOE PORCH - o ° Q 7@ men who were arrested Saturday night ina house at the rear of 21% Chouteau avenue with nearly a full outfit of burglars’ and safe-blowers’ tools in thelr possession and in the act of manufacturing one implement for opening safes. Already there is much evidence tending to show that members of this gang have engaged in recent burglaries and robberies. That some of them have tried safe- blowing already is proved by Ole Peterson, proprietor of the Peerless , wte213l Clark avenue. ; : When the raid was made by city detect- ives Saturday night a large bundle of laun- dry was found on: the bed in the’ house. ~ Mr. Peterson called at the Four Courts Monday morning and identified these goods as having been stolen from his laundry on the night of Nov. %. There were -enirts in the bundle bearing the names and laun- dry marks of several men. “That night,” said Mr. Peterson, “‘my laundry was entered by burglars who tried to open my safe. They bored a hole in the door two and a hal¢ inches deep, but the drill broke off and was left imbedded ner den en, they car say Se oR panalen ot hunkered cloth- ing.”’ House Where the Men Were Captured. The house where the nine men were found is a two-story brick, located in the rear of the lot. A solid row of houses shuts it off from the street, access to the rear house being had through a narrow passage. There are but two rooms on each floor. The lower floor was occupied by Mike Schoenen, his wife and baby. They had lived there, it is said, about three months. Detectives McGrath, Murphy, Guion, Lawler, Tracy and Cordell followed to the house a swagger youth named John Shaughnessy, who lived on Eugenia street. They suspected that Shaughnessy was a- burglar, and believed that he might have associates in the house. The six officers were admitted by Mrs. Phoenen, who opened the door whenone of them knocked. They pushed into the front room and there was a wild scampering among the men inside, including Shaugh- nessy, who had been permitted to enter. The detectives drew their revolvers. Eight men surrendered. When the officers began searching the premises thy found Schoenen, the host of the occasion, hidden under the bed and trembling with fear. He was dragged out and placed in line with the other eight while the search went on. Fear Made His Teeth Chatter. Schoenen shook with terror.as he stood there. His teeth chattered. He declared, in the language of a once famous local statesman, “I ain’t done nothin’.’”’ The men said they were roomers in the fiouse. There was but_one bed. In the kitchen was -found an iron rod, several feet long, with a hook at the end. It bore evidence of fresh work having been. done on it to change its shape. The officers had heard hammering in the kitchen before they entered the house. Detective McGrath observed an overcoat hanging behind the door. He started toward it and Albert Moebus,' one of the prison- ers, made a grab for the coat at the same time. McGrath reached it first. “It’s lucky for you,” said Moebus. McGrath took a big revolver out of the overcoat pocket. The prisoners other than the three men- tioned gave the names of Louis Jackson, Arthur McDermott, John Smith, Peter Morio, Ed Mackson and James Kelley. Al) were locked up. The woman and her baby were left in the house. Sunday Mrs. Schoenen called at the Four Courts to see her husband. Chief Desmond questioned her. Four of the Men ? Pe aoa To: 7 Be nc aa id oF OCHCHHHHHHHOSCHHS TOOLS WHICH ARE USED BY SAFEBLOWERS. Jimmy—A short crowbar used by bur Bit—A tool for boring, of various and sises, usually turned by means of «2 ap edged or. poipted end for makiig holes in hard sub- stances, ) Wrench—An instrument, often a simple bar or lever with jaws or ap angular orifice ‘either at the end or between the ends, for exerting a twisting strain, as in turning bolts, nuts, screw taps, ete.; a screw key. Dynamite. OSH OCHHOEOOSHOSHOOOS mott, James Kelley, Ed Mackson and Louls Jackson. The woman said that the laundry bundle had been taken to the house last Thurs- Schoenen, in an extremely nervous condi- tion, was “sweated” by Chief Desmond Monday morning. He denied all knowledge of harboring criminals. He said that he was &@ hard-working man and did not know that the men in his house had cracksmen's tools in their possession, “What was that hammering in your kitchen Saturday night?” asked Chief Des- mond. “One of the men,” replied Schoenen, “was making a patent, he said. It was an iron bar about so long (indicating about three feet), with a hook on the end. I told him to go outside if he wanted to do any hammering.”’ Schoenen was unable to designate which m as kirg the ‘“‘patent.”” He was OHSS HSD $$ HS SOHHSSOLS O HOH : : SOS SESSSOSSSHSSFHSSSSS SOSCOSSOSOSSOSOSOOSO SOOO OO GOSS DODOOOD ©OGHHSOSH OH OOO O OO ww Pete Morio, “IT never saw it till I came home from work Saturday night,”’ he said, “and then I asked whose it was. One of the men said it was his laundry.’’ Buried Laundry in the Cellar. Later Schoenen admitted that the laun- Gry had‘been ‘“‘buried’’ in the cellar sev- eral days before. When quegtioned as to the identity of one of his brothers-in-law, the man who gave his hame as James Kelley, Schoenen house where the gang was captured de- | replied that his real name was Tom Mc- clare that they know nothing of the men Dermott, but that he had three or four except that they frequently entered and | names Kelley, or McDermott, admitted to the! ‘They had been coming there off and on ire if he had been at work in the house as a’ bedroom. SOHSHHSOSESO SOO OS ” BY CHIEF KIELY. od —- & # The arrest of this gang I consider @ a. .very..important.. piece of work. Our. detective..department is doing excellent service this winter. Added to .the.. apprehension. of ‘“Buck’’ O'Malley and the several “icebox” robbers, who had committed a num- ber of daring. robheries, this shows that the department fs wide awake. These nihe ri .gdme of whom are jailbirds and In the des- perado class, might have done incal- culable mischief if the gang had not been broken up this early. It is quite evident that they were preparing for a systematic career of safe-blowing, and if they had been permitted to perfect their plans it is probable that many robberies would have resulted. They may be described as amateur safe-blowers, but in time they might have become experts and “‘profession- als.” It is well that they are caught now, e MATHEW KIELY. $2960 609999 BY CHIEF DESMOND. My men have done a good piece of work in capturing this gang of ama- teur cracksmen. +” They were preparing for a cam- paign of safe-blowing. While their set of tools, so far as we found them, is not complete, it is evident that they were getting a fdll set ready and were almost in shape to go out and erack safes by wholesale. These fellows are not experts, but they are advanced students in the college of burglary. They were caught in the act of manufacturing one of the tools of their trade. In addition -to the blowing of safes, I have no doubt that they contem- plated ordinary house burglaries. WILLIAM DESMOND. 2 OOOO S SS SOSSEHOSOOSS Saw that it was a case of robbery. I put up my hands. Two men searched my clothes and took my money, while the man Moebus, whom I recognize beyond a doubt, went be- hind the bar and robbed the cash drawer. I got a good look at Moebus and have no doubt he is the man. I also’ believe that ene of the other prisoners was in this gang down in the holdover, but I can’t identify him positively.”’ | Moebus was pardoned out of the Missouri penitentiary after serving part of a sen- tence of five years for burglarizing the residence of Dr. Alt on West Pine boule- vard, in 1897. Shaughnessy Is Identified. Frank Dudenheffer of 2825 La Salle street identifies John Shaughnessy as one of three men who committed a robbery at the sa- loon of John Iseli, 2301 La Salle street, sim- ilar to that at Schlueter’s place. The Iselt robbrey occurred Oct. 8 ,at night. POSTS S FSG GSS SHSSSSSS OOSOSSTSPOSSESSESOSSSOOO TESCO GOSS SS OOS Herself to Bedpost. FOUND DEAD IN OXFORD HOTEL PATHETIC NOTE LEFT SAYING DRINK CAUSED IT ALL. ~ Young Woman Registered With a Man. Signing Himself John Babbitt— _ Man Departed Sunday Night. 290000006 000600660% - OCS Seeeooeeeoe OOD $9900000000600 60 was found dead in a room at ‘Mongay morning. Unable to obtain a responée knocking at the door of the room, John printed here The body Been by Parents for a Week. O09 OO0O96O9000 HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MESSENGER BOY BOY, LOUIS BAUN? 99999066040 0900 Age, 14 years. / Height, 4 feet 10 inches, y 09$O909O0906000068 FOSS SOSCOSSS OOS a his parents fear an accident has befallen him. 3 his wages at the postoffice. He ve no in tion that he inten to esl away from home ant ne f messengers is una wore, her absence. She lives at ‘‘Louls did not come wages,’ she says,"’ and, anor before, I = jpoy a w some cciden ; oe was a good boy and had no bad Dudenheffer says he was in the saloon when the three men came in and robbed with their revolvers. He recognized young ‘Shaughnessy as one of the trio. Members of the family upstairs In the ‘left the rooms below. the cash register, covering him and {[s-‘ll | “T hav , notified rege os a 8. He always gave me his lowed him money to month e the city institutions t now have I able to find any ace of him. ) who is a 4 Siegmund was surprised when he. ed of the be 7 d sappes " he to the ’ young as Dispatch, Hismother to me this to Post-Dispatch that -hé was Thomas Mc- for several weeks,” said the woman who WHe left Dermott, an@ that under the name of Thomas Condroy had been sentenced to the Chester penitentiary from Jerseyville, Ill., April 6, 1898, for grand larceny. He received an indeterminate sentence from one to fourteen years, and was released upon his good behavior July 1, 1901. “I know I’m in for it now,” said Mc- Dermott. “It's a case of back to the mines with me, I reekon.”’ By this Mcbermott meant that he ex- pected to be sent back to serve out the balance Of his fourteen-year sentence in the Illinois prison. Two of the prisoners have been identified as participants in recent robberies. William Schlueter, whose saloon at Elev- enth and Hickory streets was robbed on the night of Oct. 17, declares that Albert Moe- bas was one of the robbers. One of Five Who Robbed Him. . “Five men entéred my saloon,” sald Mr. lives upstairs. “We saw them go in and out, but knew nothing about their busi- ness.”’ Temperature Will Not Change Much in the Neat Twenty-Four Hours, Dr. Hyatt Says. _ “No more snow for the present,”’ said Dr. Hyatt to the Post-Dispatch Monday. “The temperature will remain stationary. There is snow over the Ohio Valley today and plenty of rain tn the Southetn states." NO MORE SNOW AT PRESENT! ing of him. ng he it was a . he _— ran away. - " “He yt Cpe at the about a ter, Mrs. J. C. Algea, of 1820 Clara avenue, and I during , a, 3 age ago and from that time? have heard sae Hotel, Seventh and &t. Charles streets, — to repeated. mo and found the gift a 2 aig Oe s "that time they have not seen or f her. oa ; eee ‘e He has not been seen by his relatives since the evening of Dec. 2, after drawing . uig, was the ouly support of his mother, | ; vif. » ae eae ta. — TTR ONO eae * Mlle « a