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Dragnet - "Big Partner" (Old Time Radio, 1951) · Dragnet | Old Time Radio

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: A lone armed bandit takes about $ 5, 000 in precious stones
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: from a jewelry store in broad daylight. That robbery brings
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Sergeant Joe Friday and Sergeant Ben Romero of the Los
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: Angeles Police Department's robbery detail onto the case. And when
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: the suspect escapes custody, their search begins again. From NBC,
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: sponsored by Fatima Cigarettes, this is Dragnet, Episode 90, Big Partner,
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: first broadcast March 1st, 1951. Jack Webb stars as Friday,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: with Barton Yarbrough as Romero, Ralph Moody and Barney Phillips
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: are also heard. And now, we return to the original broadcast.
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: The sorrow you're about to hear is true. Only the
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: maids have been trained to protect the innocent. You're a
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: detective sergeant.
• 1:02
  Speaker 3: You will find the robbery detail.
• 1:04
  Speaker 4: A lone bandit robbed a jewelry store in broad daylight.
• 1:08
  Speaker 4: He takes $ 5, 000 in precious stones.
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: He's reckless. He's well-armed. Good job. Get in.
• 1:19
  Speaker 5: Drag Mass, the documented drama of an actual crime.
• 1:24
  Speaker 3: For the next 30 minutes, in cooperation with the Los
• 1:28
  Speaker 3: Angeles Police Department, you will travel step-by-step on the side
• 1:33
  Speaker 3: of the law to an actual case transcribed from official
• 1:36
  Speaker 3: police files. From beginning to end, from crime to punishment,
• 1:41
  Speaker 3: Drag Mass is the story of your police force in action.
• 1:47
  Speaker 3: Excuse me, December 2nd. This is Cillian Los Angeles. We
• 1:50
  Speaker 3: were working a day while I tried a robbery detail.
• 1:52
  Speaker 3: My partner's Ben Romero. The boss is Captain Gideon. My
• 1:57
  Speaker 3: name's Friday. It was 1.48 p.m. when I got to
• 1:58
  Speaker 3: the basement of the city hall. The time is... Well,
• 2:04
  Speaker 3: over there. Yeah, right.
• 2:10
  Speaker 6: Hi.
• 2:10
  Speaker 3: Hi, Jay. This is from Dudley, is that right?
• 2:15
  Speaker 6: Yeah.
• 2:16
  Speaker 3: Better take Dudley Boulevard out, huh?
• 2:19
  Speaker 5: Right.
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: Want to get the radio? Yeah, all right. No report yet? No,
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: he got away on foot. He headed down 6th Street
• 2:29
  Speaker 3: after the holdup. Lost his job in the cab. Better
• 2:30
  Speaker 3: watch the cab. Yeah, yeah. He's never been lost. How'd
• 2:37
  Speaker 3: the thief work it? Did you get the pay? Roger that. Well,
• 2:40
  Speaker 3: there's not much to tell. He walked in the store
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: at the right time, pointed a gun, grabbed a tray
• 2:44
  Speaker 3: full of diamond rings, and walked out. $ 5, 000. Figured he
• 2:48
  Speaker 3: must have had the jewelry store pretty well-chased. And he
• 2:50
  Speaker 3: might have had practice. He couldn't be. He's sure one thing,
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: he's well-armed. Attention all units. All units. A third individual.
• 2:56
  Speaker 4: Third individual.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: You hear that, Tom? What?
• 2:59
  Speaker 5: A man with a gun.
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: All units.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: A third individual.
• 3:03
  Speaker 5: A traffic accident.
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: A man with a gun. Code. I don't know if
• 3:09
  Speaker 3: we can roll on it, huh? Yeah, that's basically it
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: for now. Yeah, I'll call in.
• 3:14
  Speaker 5: 80K to Control 1.
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: 802 to Control 1. Control 1 to 80K, go ahead. 80K,
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: out for investigation. 80, that's it. I must see it
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: up ahead, Joe. Yeah. Right in the middle of the
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: intersection there, the car turned over, huh? Mm-hmm. You guys
• 3:33
  Speaker 3: want to do it? Yeah, let's go. Man, the stretch
• 3:40
  Speaker 3: got on straight over there. I wonder if we can
• 3:42
  Speaker 3: get to the real police. Excuse me, Frank. Let us through, please. Well,
• 3:46
  Speaker 3: let's don't just stand around looking. If somebody called the police,
• 3:49
  Speaker 3: you had to shoot them. You involved in this? Sure,
• 3:51
  Speaker 3: I was in it. Did anybody call the police? No
• 3:53
  Speaker 3: police officers. What happened? Oh, too glad to see you.
• 3:56
  Speaker 3: Awful lot of trouble. Yeah. How about this loan here?
• 4:00
  Speaker 3: What happened? Oh, I slugged him.
• 4:01
  Speaker 5: I had to.
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: What do you mean? Well, I don't know what happened.
• 4:05
  Speaker 3: He went a little crazy, I guess. He pulled this
• 4:06
  Speaker 3: gun on me. How is he, Jeff? He's got a
• 4:09
  Speaker 3: bump on the head. He seems to be all right otherwise. Okay, then.
• 4:13
  Speaker 3: I need Brooks. That truck over there, that's what I
• 4:15
  Speaker 3: was driving.
• 4:15
  Speaker 4: I was coming downstairs, Steve, and I stopped at the
• 4:19
  Speaker 4: red light over there.
• 4:20
  Speaker 3: That corner over there? Yeah. And when the.
• 4:23
  Speaker 4: Light came green, I started across the intersection. An ace
• 4:26
  Speaker 4: guy was laying here, came barreling down big, so went.
• 4:29
  Speaker 3: Right through the red light, hit the front of my truck,
• 4:31
  Speaker 3: flipped his car right over on the side, just like this. Yeah,
• 4:34
  Speaker 3: go ahead. The guy went a little crazy, I guess.
• 4:37
  Speaker 3: Right after the crack-up, I pulled the truck to the
• 4:39
  Speaker 3: curb and got out. This fella here was just climbing
• 4:42
  Speaker 3: out of the top side of his car. Didn't seem
• 4:44
  Speaker 3: hurt at all.
• 4:46
  Speaker 4: Well, when he saw me coming over to him, he
• 4:47
  Speaker 4: pulled a gun and pointed it at me. When he
• 4:50
  Speaker 4: turned and started running, I couldn't figure it out.
• 4:52
  Speaker 3: What'd you do? As soon as he came back to run,
• 4:54
  Speaker 3: I went for him and tackled him. Felt like a target.
• 4:57
  Speaker 3: That's why I said I slugged him. I had to, Oscar.
• 5:00
  Speaker 3: There's something awful funny about the whole thing. A little
• 5:04
  Speaker 3: bit of a... Well, look here. There's a spot right here.
• 5:08
  Speaker 3: It fell out of his coat when I slugged him.
• 5:10
  Speaker 3: You take a look. Yeah? Yeah. There's been three, four
• 5:14
  Speaker 3: dozen in there. Rings, all kinds.
• 5:16
  Speaker 4: Looks like diamonds in them, doesn't it?
• 5:19
  Speaker 5: The ambulance arrived and we took the unconscious fuel robbery
• 5:24
  Speaker 5: suspect to Jersey.
• 5:24
  Speaker 3: Street receiving hospital. After it was revived and treated for
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: cuts and bruises, we took him back to the city
• 5:31
  Speaker 3: hall of the interrogation room. Consider the description of the
• 5:35
  Speaker 3: jewelry store bandit almost exactly. He refused to talk. He
• 5:37
  Speaker 3: wouldn't even give us his name. He had his fingerprints
• 5:41
  Speaker 3: taken when we had him checked through R & I.
• 5:43
  Speaker 3: The man was identified as Vernon Albert McCauley, an ex-convict,
• 5:47
  Speaker 3: not a fulsome and a two-time loser. He took one
• 5:50
  Speaker 3: five-year term for armed robbery and another three years for ADW.
• 5:54
  Speaker 3: He checked out the wrecked car he'd been driving and
• 5:56
  Speaker 3: found out that it had been stolen two blocks from
• 5:58
  Speaker 3: the scene of the holdup. We had the manager of
• 6:01
  Speaker 3: the jewelry store, which had been robbed, brought downtown. He
• 6:04
  Speaker 3: identified Nicole as the bandit. The suspect still refused to talk.
• 6:08
  Speaker 3: Ben and I took him to the main jail, where
• 6:10
  Speaker 3: he was put on suspicion of 2-11-2-3. 4-15 p.m., he
• 6:13
  Speaker 3: took back into the office. Took some of them a
• 6:17
  Speaker 3: long time to learn, too. Two-time loser. This one ought
• 6:21
  Speaker 3: to finish him. I can't tell you. He's been out
• 6:22
  Speaker 3: of post for seven months and going right back in again.
• 6:25
  Speaker 4: Mm-hmm.
• 6:28
  Speaker 3: Well, we can get the complaint from the DA tomorrow
• 6:30
  Speaker 3: and set the alarm up for Thursday. Well, maybe set
• 6:33
  Speaker 3: with the manager of the jewelry store first. I wonder
• 6:36
  Speaker 3: if Macaulay could have been in one of those gas
• 6:38
  Speaker 3: station holders. Remember? That much? Yeah. Well, we'll have him
• 6:42
  Speaker 3: in the show up Thursday and see what happens. You
• 6:44
  Speaker 3: want to take care of the arrest report? Yeah, I'll
• 6:47
  Speaker 3: get out an APB, too. Might turn up some outside
• 6:49
  Speaker 3: jobs on him. I'm still hungry. You still got that
• 6:52
  Speaker 3: candy bar from last night? Yeah, I think so. Yeah,
• 6:55
  Speaker 3: there you go. What's the matter with you lately, by
• 7:01
  Speaker 3: the way? I don't know. I've been eating like a horse,
• 7:03
  Speaker 3: down and down. I'll tell you.
• 7:06
  Speaker 5: I'll get it.
• 7:07
  Speaker 3: What do you got, Joe? I got it. Right there. What?
• 7:14
  Speaker 3: The coal. The escape. A broadcast and an all-points bulletin
• 7:21
  Speaker 3: were gotten out on Vernon Nicoli. All units in the
• 7:24
  Speaker 3: vicinity of the escape were alerted. An hour passed. There
• 7:27
  Speaker 3: was no report on the suspect. They checked with the
• 7:30
  Speaker 3: main jail and got the details on the escape. They
• 7:32
  Speaker 3: told us that while Nicoli was being locked up in
• 7:34
  Speaker 3: his cell, he pushed his fingers into the doorjamb and
• 7:37
  Speaker 3: had them battle masks and the cell door closed on them.
• 7:40
  Speaker 3: Both of Nicoli's wrists were then handcuffed, and along with
• 7:43
  Speaker 3: two other ailing suspects, he was taken over to Georgia
• 7:45
  Speaker 3: Street Receiving Hospital by a pair of transportation officers. Going
• 7:49
  Speaker 3: up the stairs to the hospital, Macaulay had turned suddenly,
• 7:53
  Speaker 3: kicked one of the officers in the stomach, slugged the
• 7:55
  Speaker 3: other one in his seat. It happened at about 4.14 p.m.
• 7:59
  Speaker 3: By 11 o'clock that night, there wasn't a trace of
• 8:00
  Speaker 3: the suspect. 7.30 the next morning, Ben and I checked
• 8:03
  Speaker 3: back in for work. Macaulay was still alive. Overnight report, Joe.
• 8:10
  Speaker 3: Handle up. What do we got?
• 8:12
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 8:13
  Speaker 3: A liquor store. Gas station.
• 8:18
  Speaker 5: Mm-hmm.
• 8:18
  Speaker 3: Another liquor store. I see you haven't held up between
• 8:21
  Speaker 3: midnight and 2 a.m. Take a look at the bank description. WMA,
• 8:25
  Speaker 3: 5 feet 9 yards, 50 pounds, medium build, dark navy,
• 8:30
  Speaker 3: very dark eyes, dark complexion, deep scar, and chin. How
• 8:33
  Speaker 3: about it? I didn't waste time getting started, did I?
• 8:37
  Speaker 3: You put a big come down against me, Corey. Diamonds,
• 8:39
  Speaker 3: that's delicious to us. I knew it would be something.
• 8:41
  Speaker 3: We didn't have any clothes, no money. How about that
• 8:43
  Speaker 3: car you used on those jobs? Stolen. Recovered earlier this morning.
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: They're going over to the plane. So now, Joe? Really? Yeah,
• 8:51
  Speaker 3: I'll miss one right away. We're going to get Jeff's
• 8:52
  Speaker 3: call a minute ago. Yeah, what's that? He's the name,
• 8:55
  Speaker 3: I guess. Matthew Robbs. He runs a candy store near
• 8:58
  Speaker 3: one of the great streets over in Boer Heights. He
• 9:00
  Speaker 3: might be able to tell you something. Yeah, about what?
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: He told me. I saw him last night. We got
• 9:07
  Speaker 3: in the car and drove over to the Boyle Heights
• 9:09
  Speaker 3: district where we located Matthew Hobbs' place of business. It
• 9:12
  Speaker 3: was a small store on Delray Avenue, one block from
• 9:15
  Speaker 3: the neighborhood grammar school. The sign out in front read,
• 9:18
  Speaker 3: New Geneva Candy Parlor and Variety Store. It was the
• 9:21
  Speaker 3: usual display in the window. We wind up carrying a
• 9:24
  Speaker 3: few inexpensive dolls, pencils, writing tablets, and some crepe paper. Inside,
• 9:29
  Speaker 3: the main attraction was two long.
• 9:31
  Speaker 4: Showcases filled with a variety of penny candies. There was
• 9:34
  Speaker 4: a small photopop in the rear of.
• 9:35
  Speaker 3: The store, topped with a slab of worn marble. Matthew
• 9:39
  Speaker 3: Hobbs was a small, thin man who looked to be
• 9:41
  Speaker 3: in his mid-60s. He sat behind one of the counters
• 9:43
  Speaker 3: selling telephone badges, Christmas candy, while he talked to us.
• 9:47
  Speaker 3: We asked him about Nicola. Yeah, that's right. Don't you agree?
• 9:51
  Speaker 3: last night. About 10 o'clock, 10.15, no later. Do you
• 9:55
  Speaker 3: want me to help him? Do you know Nicole that well, Mr. Hunt?
• 9:58
  Speaker 3: As well as I know most of the kids that
• 10:00
  Speaker 3: grew up around here. Yes, I guess I know him well.
• 10:03
  Speaker 3: What did he ask for in the way of help? Money? Clothes?
• 10:07
  Speaker 3: He's got no family left. I guess I was the
• 10:09
  Speaker 3: only one he's ever come to. Mm-hmm. But how is
• 10:11
  Speaker 3: it that you didn't notify us sooner, Mr.
• 10:13
  Speaker 4: Hobbs?
• 10:13
  Speaker 3: I knew you'd ask. I'd like to explain, if I could. Yes, please.
• 10:17
  Speaker 3: Do you have any of that stack of bags there, Sergeant? No,
• 10:21
  Speaker 3: I don't. Yes?
• 10:22
  Speaker 6: No, no.
• 10:22
  Speaker 3: No, the number two. Yeah, those. Yeah. All right. Here
• 10:25
  Speaker 3: you are. Thank you. As I said, he knocked on
• 10:29
  Speaker 3: my back door about 10 o'clock, and I let him in.
• 10:31
  Speaker 3: Acted just like an animal. I found a crazy animal.
• 10:34
  Speaker 3: Did he have handcuffs on? Yeah, but the chain connected.
• 10:37
  Speaker 3: He was broken. He made me file off his handcuffs.
• 10:41
  Speaker 3: I wouldn't do it at first. I had no idea
• 10:42
  Speaker 3: what was going on. He said he'd kill me if
• 10:45
  Speaker 3: I didn't help him. But trust me, I never saw
• 10:48
  Speaker 3: Bernie like that before. Go on, Pete. You know, Sergeant,
• 10:52
  Speaker 3: I knew that boy when he was in grammar school
• 10:54
  Speaker 3: right up the street there. They should sit down and
• 10:57
  Speaker 3: think sometimes, huh? The way they grow up and change. Yes, yes. Well,
• 11:00
  Speaker 3: what happened after you took the cups off of them?
• 11:02
  Speaker 3: Then you got out of your gear clothes and put
• 11:03
  Speaker 3: on one of my suits. Took what I had in
• 11:05
  Speaker 3: my wallet, twelve dollars, and then you kept running around
• 11:07
  Speaker 3: and you found my gun. You took that with you, too.
• 11:10
  Speaker 3: Didn't you think of calling for help? Not the way
• 11:12
  Speaker 3: you like to charge me. Just like a crazy animal.
• 11:15
  Speaker 3: I would have killed you if I had tried anything.
• 11:17
  Speaker 3: You warned me not to tell anybody you were here.
• 11:19
  Speaker 3: You said you'd come back to kill me if I did. Well,
• 11:22
  Speaker 3: I waited until this morning, and I called the police.
• 11:24
  Speaker 3: You said Macaulay took a gun from Mr. Adams. What
• 11:26
  Speaker 3: kind of a gun was it? 32 automatic. It's a Colt.
• 11:30
  Speaker 3: I've had it for years. I have it registered with
• 11:32
  Speaker 3: you people. He took just what he pleased. Clothes, guns, money.
• 11:36
  Speaker 3: If you want the truth, Sergeant, I just wasn't brave
• 11:39
  Speaker 3: enough to try to stop him. But when Macaulay left here,
• 11:41
  Speaker 3: did you notice if he had a car? No, he
• 11:43
  Speaker 3: left on foot. He left across the creek and went
• 11:46
  Speaker 3: down that way, towards the town. I don't know. I
• 11:50
  Speaker 3: don't suppose you'll get too far. I hope not. Do
• 11:53
  Speaker 3: you have any idea who he might have had a contact?
• 11:55
  Speaker 3: Some of his old friends, his relatives? No, no. He
• 11:58
  Speaker 3: doesn't have any folks I know of. Terrible thing, isn't it?
• 12:01
  Speaker 3: Kids growing up. It's a way to change, like Nicole.
• 12:05
  Speaker 3: I don't understand them when they're kids. I've seen hundreds
• 12:07
  Speaker 3: of them come through here. Know what they're thinking, how
• 12:10
  Speaker 3: they feel. Kind of a hobby. I understand kids.
• 12:14
  Speaker 4: But the way they grow up, all of a sudden
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: they stop being kids. I don't understand them after that.
• 12:25
  Speaker 3: After we left the candy store, we went back to
• 12:27
  Speaker 3: the office and got out a supplementary APB containing a
• 12:29
  Speaker 3: description of the suspect's clothing and the gun that he'd stolen.
• 12:32
  Speaker 3: Together with Gonzalez and Penner from robbery, Ben and I
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: checked all of Nicole's known friends in the usual hangout.
• 12:38
  Speaker 3: Takeouts were placed. We got nowhere. The late evening holdups continued.
• 12:43
  Speaker 3: Each of the victims identified Nicole as the bandit. He
• 12:46
  Speaker 3: was the same M.O. in each case. He worked only
• 12:48
  Speaker 3: on the weekends, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. He'd steal
• 12:51
  Speaker 3: a car, pull three hold-ups in the same general area
• 12:54
  Speaker 3: within an hour, abandon the car in the same area,
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: and then disappear. Two weeks passed, and then a month.
• 13:01
  Speaker 3: The weekend robberies went on. In the most recent hold-up victims,
• 13:04
  Speaker 3: we found out that Macaulay had picked up a partner.
• 13:07
  Speaker 3: We checked the man's description through his staff's office. Each
• 13:09
  Speaker 3: of their stolen cars used by the suspects and then
• 13:12
  Speaker 3: abandoned were checked for prints. They failed to identify the
• 13:15
  Speaker 3: second man. The hold-ups continued. Macaulay and his partner were
• 13:18
  Speaker 3: still alive. Monday, January 26th, 8.30 a.m. Bill and I
• 13:23
  Speaker 3: met with Captain Didion.
• 13:26
  Speaker 5: What's the time, kid?
• 13:28
  Speaker 3: He was in three holdups. Friday, three Saturdays, three Sundays.
• 13:32
  Speaker 3: He's proved his point. He's consistent. Now, when do you
• 13:35
  Speaker 3: blow the whistle on him? We're doing everything we can
• 13:37
  Speaker 3: be done. Stay tough. Yes, and then it's on duty.
• 13:40
  Speaker 3: Not enough. The corner pocket wants some results. They want
• 13:42
  Speaker 3: them fast. How about the time he rested for the
• 13:45
  Speaker 3: three stick-ups last night? Have they been double checked? No, correct.
• 13:48
  Speaker 3: There's something else for you. Here it is. Where did
• 13:51
  Speaker 3: he jump in all this here? The drugstore out in
• 13:54
  Speaker 3: West Hollywood. Robbed at 11.14 p.m. Yeah? All right, now
• 13:58
  Speaker 3: this one. Coffee shop out in the valley. Robbed at 11.21 p.m.
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: Both up in the same M.O. The same area. Well,
• 14:04
  Speaker 3: it doesn't save you. They couldn't have made it from
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: the spot in West Hollywood out to the valley in
• 14:08
  Speaker 3: seven minutes. It's not possible. There's a report. Check it.
• 14:11
  Speaker 3: I know, but how could they do it? Must be
• 14:14
  Speaker 3: some way to work out the answer. There's got to be.
• 14:15
  Speaker 3: I can give you a shortcut, you know? You're totally
• 14:17
  Speaker 3: fine on it. Another two weeks passed, and then two
• 14:24
  Speaker 3: weeks more. Besides the extra men and units put in
• 14:26
  Speaker 3: service on weekends, two dozen separate stakeouts were established in
• 14:30
  Speaker 3: areas where we figured Nicole and her accomplice would strike.
• 14:33
  Speaker 3: Didn't help much. The holdups continued. There was only one difference.
• 14:37
  Speaker 3: The description of the bandit didn't drive anymore. The show
• 14:39
  Speaker 3: didn't have an answer to the superhuman speed that the
• 14:42
  Speaker 3: two gunmen see in the show and robbing victims at
• 14:44
  Speaker 3: widely separated points all within a short period of time.
• 14:48
  Speaker 3: They stayed on it. Friday, February 21st. Ben and I
• 14:52
  Speaker 3: took our team on a night stakeout in a vacant
• 14:54
  Speaker 3: store on Sunset Boulevard. We were assigned to cover a
• 14:56
  Speaker 3: drugstore and a bar directly across the street. We spent
• 14:59
  Speaker 3: two weekends on the job. It was quiet. Nothing happened.
• 15:03
  Speaker 3: The third weekend was no different. One thing's for sure.
• 15:08
  Speaker 3: We never have any luck taking stakeouts.
• 15:10
  Speaker 6: No, we don't.
• 15:11
  Speaker 3: This empty store must be the draftiest place in town.
• 15:14
  Speaker 3: We always had worse. What time was that? Five past midnight.
• 15:22
  Speaker 3: That little band over in the bar sure earn their money,
• 15:25
  Speaker 3: don't they? They do for a while, don't they? Yeah, but...
• 15:28
  Speaker 3: Have a look. Hey, is there any other car down
• 15:32
  Speaker 3: the street here? Yeah, they're heading for the bar.
• 15:35
  Speaker 5: What do you think?
• 15:36
  Speaker 3: It's about the same day. Looks like they're in a hurry.
• 15:40
  Speaker 3: They're going in the bar. Yeah, come on. Come on,
• 15:49
  Speaker 3: we better hurry. That's it, come on. All right, throw
• 16:02
  Speaker 3: them again. Look out. All right, hold it, hold it.
• 16:06
  Speaker 3: Throw them again.
• 16:07
  Speaker 5: Now, come on, hands behind your head.
• 16:10
  Speaker 3: All right, hold it right there. Come on, on your feet.
• 16:12
  Speaker 3: You all right, Ben?
• 16:13
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 16:14
  Speaker 3: You had a good game. I like both of them.
• 16:17
  Speaker 3: That wraps it up, huh? Well, you better look at
• 16:20
  Speaker 3: one of them. Huh?
• 16:24
  Speaker 5: Either one of them, Macaulay.
• 16:31
  Speaker 4: You are listening to Dragnet, a series of authentic case
• 16:34
  Speaker 4: histories documented from official files.
• 16:38
  Speaker 6: Some of our corporate customers are worried about employees going
• 16:42
  Speaker 6: wild purchasing office supplies. StaplesLink.com allows them to set up
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• 16:53
  Speaker 6: and IBM are bringing office supplies and office management together.
• 16:57
  Speaker 6: I'm Ann Marie Keene of StaplesLink.com, Vice President of Business
• 17:02
  Speaker 6: to Business eCommerce.
• 17:03
  Speaker 3: Thank you. Thank you. Saturday, February 22nd. Ben and I
• 17:27
  Speaker 3: took the two robbery suspects downtown to the city hall
• 17:30
  Speaker 3: to the interrogation room. We checked in to R &
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: I and found that they both had records for burglary
• 17:34
  Speaker 3: in Grand Statoil. The car that they'd been using that
• 17:37
  Speaker 3: night had been stolen. After two and a half hours
• 17:40
  Speaker 3: of interrogation, one of the suspects, the P. Albinos, decided
• 17:44
  Speaker 3: to break down and cooperate. 1 a.m., interrogation. I got
• 17:47
  Speaker 3: something out of it, don't I? Helping you. You know
• 17:49
  Speaker 3: I'll forget I helped you when you give me a call. Well,
• 17:52
  Speaker 3: if you didn't know about it, Pete, you'd be making
• 17:54
  Speaker 3: me out of court.
• 17:55
  Speaker 4: And I want you to know, I knew I never
• 17:57
  Speaker 4: could have went for it.
• 17:57
  Speaker 3: Believe me, it won't happen again.
• 17:59
  Speaker 4: The caller you talked to me on, the trustee of Wesley,
• 18:01
  Speaker 4: helped me out on the pick-up. And I was his partner.
• 18:04
  Speaker 4: It's what's been said. You were a foolproof sister, man.
• 18:09
  Speaker 4: I was a sucker enough.
• 18:10
  Speaker 3: To go for it. How long have you worked with him?
• 18:12
  Speaker 3: Just a couple of weekends. Three, four, maybe. I didn't
• 18:15
  Speaker 3: get along with him. Nobody gets along with him. He's
• 18:18
  Speaker 3: a little crazy, I think. Who's working with him now?
• 18:21
  Speaker 3: I don't know.
• 18:21
  Speaker 4: He's had two, three different guys. I don't know who's
• 18:24
  Speaker 4: working with him. Sergeant, can I have a drink of water, please?
• 18:30
  Speaker 3: I'll get you something. Yeah, sure.
• 18:36
  Speaker 4: When I left them, I went on my own and
• 18:39
  Speaker 4: picked up a partner and.
• 18:40
  Speaker 3: Used their system. Pretty good one, huh? Well, it looked
• 18:54
  Speaker 3: like it, though. Were we working all week, guys, picking
• 18:56
  Speaker 3: up a hot car, dropping a friend? Yeah, you got it.
• 18:58
  Speaker 3: It must be half a dozen guys in this town
• 19:00
  Speaker 3: working with just a male guy. He's a caller. He's
• 19:02
  Speaker 3: a caller, too. Where do we find a PTO? A caller? No,
• 19:05
  Speaker 3: not for sure.
• 19:06
  Speaker 4: He's a figure, you know. He doesn't live there in town.
• 19:09
  Speaker 4: He only comes up for the weekend. He works Friday, Saturday, Sunday,
• 19:12
  Speaker 4: and then he takes off again.
• 19:13
  Speaker 3: Takes off for what? Went down by the border someplace,
• 19:16
  Speaker 3: Palm City, you know, I'm not sure. Well, don't forget
• 19:20
  Speaker 3: I'm helping you, huh? You'll let him know I cooperated. Yeah,
• 19:23
  Speaker 3: we'll let him know, too. Now, when's the last time
• 19:25
  Speaker 3: you saw Nicole? Oh, it's been a month, anyway.
• 19:27
  Speaker 4: I never want to see him again. Well, this may
• 19:30
  Speaker 4: help you, though. I know where the Southland stays. The
• 19:32
  Speaker 4: problem on the Southland part, I can give you the address.
• 19:34
  Speaker 4: She probably goes to here once in a while.
• 19:36
  Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Anybody else you can think of? No, that's about it.
• 19:39
  Speaker 3: There won't be any pushovers, Sergeant. Like I said, I
• 19:41
  Speaker 3: think he's a little crazy. You know something we need
• 19:43
  Speaker 3: you on a tape? Well, we'll give it a try. Oh,
• 19:45
  Speaker 3: I mean it that way. He's wild, but you've got him,
• 19:47
  Speaker 3: I guess. Just one thing. What?
• 19:50
  Speaker 4: You'll have to kill him first. 3.45 a.m.
• 19:59
  Speaker 3: Pete Albinares and his accomplice were booked at the main
• 20:03
  Speaker 3: jail on suspicion 211-22. The next morning, Ben and I
• 20:06
  Speaker 3: checked out the address of Macaulay's girlfriend, which Albinares had
• 20:09
  Speaker 3: given us. The girlfriend's name was Esther Rivard. She told
• 20:12
  Speaker 3: us that she hadn't seen Macaulay in more than two weeks.
• 20:15
  Speaker 3: or after a senior with a suspect stayed when he
• 20:17
  Speaker 3: was in town. He gave us an address on South Seacoast.
• 20:20
  Speaker 3: We called in and arranged for a stakeout on the
• 20:22
  Speaker 3: girl's place, and we drove over to check the address
• 20:24
  Speaker 3: that she'd given us. It was a small apartment court
• 20:27
  Speaker 3: on the edge of the industrial district. Macaulay wasn't there,
• 20:29
  Speaker 3: neither was the manager. We talked to one of the
• 20:32
  Speaker 3: tenants who told us that the manager, Mrs. Clara Fontaine,
• 20:35
  Speaker 3: was out of town. She said that while she was gone,
• 20:37
  Speaker 3: her daughter, Norma, was looking after the place. The daughter
• 20:40
  Speaker 3: was employed as a secretary at the Blue Cross Hospital
• 20:43
  Speaker 3: plan office over on Wilshire Boulevard. We called the office
• 20:46
  Speaker 3: and arranged for another stay out at the apartment court. 1.25 p.m.
• 20:49
  Speaker 3: We located the landlady's daughter at the Blue Cross office
• 20:52
  Speaker 3: on Wilshire and showed her Nicole's mugshot.
• 20:55
  Speaker 6: Yes, it's one of Mom's tenants, Mr.
• 20:59
  Speaker 3: Reynolds.
• 20:59
  Speaker 6: He's on Bungalow 5.
• 21:01
  Speaker 3: Anyone staying with him or something?
• 21:04
  Speaker 6: No, I'm glad you stayed with him, Mom.
• 21:06
  Speaker 3: He was busy, though. Is there something wrong? But when
• 21:09
  Speaker 3: did you see this man last? This man?
• 21:12
  Speaker 6: When I was leaving for work, he was outside working
• 21:15
  Speaker 6: in his car.
• 21:17
  Speaker 3: I did see him, too. Sure, go ahead. Look around.
• 21:22
  Speaker 3: You see?
• 21:24
  Speaker 6: I see. No, just address the letter to Blue Cross Hospital, son.
• 21:30
  Speaker 6: You can send it to us here at the wheelchair office.
• 21:33
  Speaker 3: That's all right. You're welcome. I'm sorry.
• 21:38
  Speaker 6: I went without going to sleep.
• 21:41
  Speaker 3: You told us that you saw this man working on
• 21:43
  Speaker 3: his car this morning. Oh, yes.
• 21:44
  Speaker 6: He was parked right outside my son. I couldn't bear
• 21:47
  Speaker 6: to meet him. I'm going to tell Mommy about it
• 21:50
  Speaker 6: and she'll get home.
• 21:51
  Speaker 3: What's happening?
• 21:52
  Speaker 6: No, it was certainly strange because it was not that
• 21:55
  Speaker 6: time of year. That's why I noticed it.
• 21:57
  Speaker 3: What's that?
• 21:58
  Speaker 6: He was pointing the license plate from his car.
• 22:02
  Speaker 3: Did you get the number? Yes.
• 22:03
  Speaker 6: 1.32 p.m.
• 22:08
  Speaker 3: For the information furnished to the private girl, Ben got
• 22:11
  Speaker 3: on the phone and called in the description of the
• 22:13
  Speaker 3: suspect's car, together with a key set of license numbers.
• 22:16
  Speaker 3: It was a 1941 Ford sedan, dark blue, white sidewall tires.
• 22:20
  Speaker 3: Communications got out a broadcast and a supplementary APB on it.
• 22:24
  Speaker 3: At 6 p.m., Ben and I relieved the men on
• 22:26
  Speaker 3: a stakeout at Nicole's apartment. We waited. No sign of them.
• 22:31
  Speaker 3: We checked with the officer on the hour. No sign
• 22:34
  Speaker 3: of the car. 10 p.m. Still nothing doing. 11 o'clock. Nothing.
• 22:38
  Speaker 3: The jollified penance and robbery drove out and relieved us,
• 22:40
  Speaker 3: and we headed back to the office. 11.26 p.m. What
• 22:43
  Speaker 3: do you think? I'm very low. Plugged every hole I
• 22:48
  Speaker 3: could think of. Seems good for a break, isn't it?
• 22:52
  Speaker 3: Over you. I could use some sleep. Wait a minute. Right. Yeah,
• 22:56
  Speaker 3: right away. All right, you guys want to move on?
• 23:00
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 23:01
  Speaker 3: What is it? 11.56 p.m. Jenny and I drove to
• 23:11
  Speaker 3: the vicinity of 12th and Beacon where we checked with
• 23:14
  Speaker 3: a man in Unit 80K who'd spotted the car. They'd
• 23:17
  Speaker 3: gotten out a Code 5 on it. The description matched perfectly.
• 23:21
  Speaker 3: A 1941 Ford sedan, dark blue, white sidewall tires. The
• 23:24
  Speaker 3: license number was one of those given us by the
• 23:26
  Speaker 3: apartment manager's daughter that afternoon. Together with the two men
• 23:30
  Speaker 3: in the 86K, we staked out on the suspect's car
• 23:32
  Speaker 3: at a distance. It was parked almost exactly in the
• 23:35
  Speaker 3: middle of the block. About 20 feet behind it, a
• 23:38
  Speaker 3: red and white delivery truck was parked. The street was
• 23:41
  Speaker 3: fairly deserted. The only place that was open was a
• 23:44
  Speaker 3: small corner bar at the far end of the block.
• 23:46
  Speaker 5: 12.30.
• 23:47
  Speaker 3: 1 a.m. No one came near the dark blue sedan.
• 23:51
  Speaker 3: They waited. 2 a.m. The corner bar closed up. A
• 23:55
  Speaker 3: man came out, got in the red and white delivery truck,
• 23:58
  Speaker 3: and drove off.
• 23:58
  Speaker 5: 2.30 a.m.
• 23:59
  Speaker 3: The dark blue sedan was still sitting there. He kept waiting.
• 24:05
  Speaker 6: Roger, 15-hour.
• 24:05
  Speaker 3: Code 7. Well, one way or the other, I wish
• 24:08
  Speaker 3: he'd make up his mind. It's a long way. Cold
• 24:11
  Speaker 3: rain here, and it wasn't that very snowy. Better check
• 24:15
  Speaker 3: and see if you're clear. Yeah, I'll do it. Ready,
• 24:19
  Speaker 3: clear to control one. Heal clear to control one. Control
• 24:22
  Speaker 3: one to ready clear.
• 24:24
  Speaker 4: Go ahead.
• 24:24
  Speaker 3: Ready clear to control one. We clear.
• 24:28
  Speaker 6: Control 1 to 80K, stand by.
• 24:31
  Speaker 3: Oh, no, it's Nick. Oh, I'm out. You too? Yeah.
• 24:37
  Speaker 3: I guess we do without him.
• 24:39
  Speaker 5: Control 1 to 80K.
• 24:40
  Speaker 3: Control 1 to 80K, you're clear. Code 1, KM867. 80K
• 24:44
  Speaker 3: to Control 1, Roger. KM867. Oh, hello, Joe. Just came
• 24:47
  Speaker 3: to call. Yeah. Far end of the block, opposite side.
• 24:51
  Speaker 3: Heading up this way.
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 24:52
  Speaker 3: You make out two of them there?
• 24:54
  Speaker 4: Uh-huh.
• 24:54
  Speaker 3: Two. Two? They're passing by, Mr. Drenner. Oh. No, are they? No. Well,
• 25:01
  Speaker 3: they're getting in, aren't they? Mm-hmm. Come on. About to destroy.
• 25:06
  Speaker 3: They're getting out. All right, hold it there, both of you.
• 25:09
  Speaker 3: Sit down, Joe. Shut up, the police. Behind the car.
• 25:13
  Speaker 3: All right, pull it. Go, go, go. Throw out your guns,
• 25:18
  Speaker 3: both of you. Harry, don't shoot. Throw out your guns.
• 25:20
  Speaker 3: They'll kill us. Get up, Harry. They'll kill us. Come on,
• 25:23
  Speaker 3: pull them out. Don't shoot. Here's my gun. Don't shoot.
• 25:27
  Speaker 3: One of them. Come on, Harry. You got it. Get up.
• 25:33
  Speaker 3: That's two. Let's go. Yeah, get up. There's a gun.
• 25:36
  Speaker 3: Don't shoot it up. My hand's up. All right, shoot
• 25:39
  Speaker 3: him up. Okay, I will. But don't shoot. I didn't
• 25:42
  Speaker 3: use my gun.
• 25:42
  Speaker 6: Harry did.
• 25:43
  Speaker 3: I tried to tell him he heard me. You heard me?
• 25:45
  Speaker 3: He heard me. He should not be shoot. Check my gun.
• 25:47
  Speaker 3: I didn't shoot it. Come on. Get him out in
• 25:49
  Speaker 3: front of me. I guess, yeah. All right. Come on, Ralphie.
• 25:57
  Speaker 3: Third time for me. All right, throw it. Okay, Joe,
• 26:00
  Speaker 3: you ready? Let's go. Please, huh? Give me a break.
• 26:03
  Speaker 3: You put the wrong time to cry, Mason. Please, huh?
• 26:05
  Speaker 3: This is the third time for me. I'm no good
• 26:07
  Speaker 3: in that. Here, you have your cash. You can take
• 26:09
  Speaker 3: them away. Let's make a deal, huh? I'm no good
• 26:11
  Speaker 3: in jail. No good at all. We'll go better out here.
• 26:14
  Speaker 3: Let's go.
• 26:16
  Speaker 5: Let's go.
• 26:23
  Speaker 3: Only the men were changed to protect the innocent. On
• 26:27
  Speaker 3: May 24th, trial was held in Superior Court, Department 87,
• 26:29
  Speaker 3: City and County of Los Angeles, State of California. In
• 26:32
  Speaker 3: a moment, the results of that trial. Now... Vernon Nicoli
• 26:43
  Speaker 3: and his accomplices were tried and convicted on several counts
• 26:46
  Speaker 3: of first-degree robbery. They received sentences as prescribed by law
• 26:50
  Speaker 3: and are now serving their terms in the state penitentiary.
• 26:53
  Speaker 3: First-degree robbery is punishable by a prison term of not
• 26:56
  Speaker 3: less than five years with a maximum life term. Ladies
• 27:00
  Speaker 3: and gentlemen, the Red Cross has been asked by your
• 27:03
  Speaker 3: government to help the nation mobilize for defense. You can
• 27:07
  Speaker 3: help by giving generously to the Red Cross. You have
• 27:14
  Speaker 3: just heard Dragnet, a series of authentications from official files.
• 27:17
  Speaker 3: Technical advice comes from the Office of Chief of Police, W.H. Butcher,
• 27:21
  Speaker 3: Los Angeles Police Department.
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: We close the file on Dragnet, Episode 90, Big Partner.
• 27:28
  Speaker 1: Follow Dragnet for more classic broadcasts.