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Dragnet: The Big Betty (EP4616) · The Great Detectives Present Dragnet (Old Time Radio)

• 0:28
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho.
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: This is your host, Adam Grant. In a moment, we're
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: going to bring you this week's episode of Dragnet. And yes,
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: I am back in Boise. It's not just a mistakes
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: I seem to make at least twice on every recording
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: I made in Orlando. I kind of hope I caught
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: them all. And I am really back home in Boise.
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: And we'll talk about that a bit after the podcast.
• 0:59
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• 2:15
  Speaker 1: to something extraordinary. Now, speaking of something extraordinary. From November
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: twenty third, nineteen fifty, here's the Big Betty.
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: The story you were about to hear is true, only
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: the names have been changed to protect the innocent. You're
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: a detective sergeant. You're assigned to Bunco detail. A gang
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: of petty swindlers is set up operations in your city.
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: They're experienced, cunning, they work fast. Your job get.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: Them dragnet the documented drama of an actual crime. Well
• 3:09
  Speaker 3: the next thirty minutes, in cooperation with the Los Angeles
• 3:12
  Speaker 3: Police Department, you will travel step by step on the
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: side of the law through an actual case transcribed from
• 3:18
  Speaker 3: official police files. From beginning to end, from crime to punishment,
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: Dragnet is the story of your police force in action.
• 3:29
  Speaker 4: It was Tuesday, December fourteenth, was cold Los Angeles. We
• 3:32
  Speaker 4: were working the day Watch out of Bunco Detail. My
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: partner's Ben Ramero. The boss is Captain McCauley. My name
• 3:38
  Speaker 4: is Friday. It was ten thirty five am when I
• 3:40
  Speaker 4: got to Room thirty eight Bunco Detail.
• 3:43
  Speaker 5: Joe Gubin.
• 3:45
  Speaker 6: Sure this is ms Bergs from you talked to run
• 3:47
  Speaker 6: phone lastner. Oh yeah, sure, this is my partner, Sergeant Friday.
• 3:50
  Speaker 7: How do you do?
• 3:51
  Speaker 5: Glad to know you? She cares down.
• 3:53
  Speaker 7: Thank you house downtown, So I thought it'd be just
• 3:57
  Speaker 7: as easy for me to come in and see you.
• 3:59
  Speaker 5: Did you bring mostly with Iamus Brestan.
• 4:01
  Speaker 7: Here they are wristwatch, pen and pencils set.
• 4:07
  Speaker 5: She'll make him look nice, don't they on the outside.
• 4:10
  Speaker 8: Yeah, let me take the back off the watch for you.
• 4:15
  Speaker 8: There you can see for yourself.
• 4:17
  Speaker 7: Searchant.
• 4:17
  Speaker 5: It's a joke, not worth fifteen cents.
• 4:20
  Speaker 7: Urge me forty eight dollars for that watch. So it
• 4:22
  Speaker 7: was hostel.
• 4:23
  Speaker 8: He wasn't making any profit on it. Tell me he
• 4:25
  Speaker 8: was doing it because he's known Harry so well. Watch
• 4:28
  Speaker 8: only ran for day.
• 4:29
  Speaker 7: And it stopped.
• 4:30
  Speaker 5: How about the pen and pencil?
• 4:31
  Speaker 8: Said man, this is bad pens just a shell. Won't
• 4:34
  Speaker 8: even write, say him with a pencil. I paid him
• 4:38
  Speaker 8: thirty dollars for them.
• 4:41
  Speaker 5: This engraving on the pen was love from Harry.
• 4:45
  Speaker 8: That's Harry's boy is engaged to. That's how the man
• 4:48
  Speaker 8: got me interested to start with. Came to my house
• 4:51
  Speaker 8: and gave him to me the watch and the pen
• 4:53
  Speaker 8: and pencil. Said Harry had ordered them his presents for me.
• 4:56
  Speaker 7: So I started to cry when.
• 4:59
  Speaker 9: He brought them for Harry.
• 5:01
  Speaker 5: When did this man come to your home, Misperscombe?
• 5:05
  Speaker 7: Yesterday morning?
• 5:07
  Speaker 8: I guess I should have been more careful, but I
• 5:09
  Speaker 8: didn't think anybody would do a thing like that.
• 5:11
  Speaker 5: What kind of a story did he give you?
• 5:14
  Speaker 7: Well?
• 5:15
  Speaker 8: He came to the door and told me his name
• 5:17
  Speaker 8: was Spencer. He said Harry had ordered these things his
• 5:20
  Speaker 8: presence for me. Harry told him to deliver them to
• 5:23
  Speaker 8: my house. Watch looked beautiful in the case. I didn't
• 5:26
  Speaker 8: know anything it was wrong.
• 5:28
  Speaker 5: I see. Would you go on please?
• 5:30
  Speaker 7: He told me.
• 5:31
  Speaker 8: It was a special order, said Harry had written him
• 5:34
  Speaker 8: from overseas a week before. Harry was in the Marine Corps.
• 5:37
  Speaker 8: You know well, he said he hoped Jim Graving was
• 5:41
  Speaker 8: all right. Why Harry wrote he wanted it in his letter.
• 5:46
  Speaker 7: I just couldn't take it, I cried.
• 5:48
  Speaker 5: This man he preganned to be a close friend of Harry.
• 5:52
  Speaker 8: Yeah, that's why I showed him the letter, one from
• 5:55
  Speaker 8: the Marine Corps, Harry being killed overseas?
• 5:58
  Speaker 5: When did you receive that letter? Mispriced him?
• 6:01
  Speaker 8: Two days before on Saturday. Harry's name was on casualty
• 6:05
  Speaker 8: list on Monday.
• 6:06
  Speaker 5: Yes, I understand. What did the man do when he
• 6:09
  Speaker 5: showed him the letter?
• 6:11
  Speaker 8: He sympathized with me, he pretended to. I didn't think
• 6:16
  Speaker 8: there was any trick. I didn't think anybody was set low.
• 6:20
  Speaker 8: Pen and pencil set looked a little cheap, but I
• 6:23
  Speaker 8: wanted them, no matter how cheap they were, Harry's last
• 6:26
  Speaker 8: present to me, That's.
• 6:27
  Speaker 7: What I thought.
• 6:28
  Speaker 5: How did he broach the idea of money?
• 6:30
  Speaker 8: Well, when he was ready to leave, he told me
• 6:33
  Speaker 8: Harry ordered the things on credit, so he didn't want
• 6:36
  Speaker 8: to mention it, but he wondered how I could get
• 6:38
  Speaker 8: payment for the watch on the pen and pencil.
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: Well, he didn't show you ability an invoice listing the
• 6:43
  Speaker 4: price of the watch or the engraving that was done.
• 6:45
  Speaker 8: No, and I didn't want him bother and Harry's mother's
• 6:49
  Speaker 8: father at a time like this. I borrowed some money
• 6:52
  Speaker 8: from my dad and paid him.
• 6:54
  Speaker 4: Let's see, it's forty eight dollars for the watch, thirty
• 6:57
  Speaker 4: for the pen and pencil center.
• 6:59
  Speaker 8: Yeah. He gave me a phone number to call if
• 7:01
  Speaker 8: the watch needed adjustment. When I found the watch was
• 7:04
  Speaker 8: a fake, I call a number. It was a Chinese laundry.
• 7:07
  Speaker 8: They didn't know anything about it.
• 7:09
  Speaker 4: You haven't seen or heard from this man since he
• 7:11
  Speaker 4: left your house yesterday morning. No, could you describe this
• 7:14
  Speaker 4: man for as miss bergtram? What he looked like closing
• 7:16
  Speaker 4: his way?
• 7:17
  Speaker 8: What it's right here in this slip of paper, Sergeant,
• 7:23
  Speaker 8: I wrote it all out for you.
• 7:24
  Speaker 5: Thank you. Well, you're not alone, if that's any consolation.
• 7:28
  Speaker 4: There's an army with a lot in Hollywood was cheated
• 7:30
  Speaker 4: on the same kind of deal last Friday.
• 7:32
  Speaker 7: It's so cruel. You see a dead person's name to.
• 7:34
  Speaker 5: Cheat you, Yes, ma'am.
• 7:37
  Speaker 7: How could anybody get lower.
• 7:38
  Speaker 4: Than that they keep trying. Ben and I took Miss
• 7:43
  Speaker 4: Bergstrough's crime report. The phony watching pen and pencils set
• 7:46
  Speaker 4: were booked as evidence. In the past two weeks we'd
• 7:49
  Speaker 4: received a half a dozen identical complaints from relatives or
• 7:52
  Speaker 4: friends of lately deceased persons. The swindler, or con man,
• 7:55
  Speaker 4: as he likes to be called in this trade, gets
• 7:57
  Speaker 4: the names of lately deceased persons from the obituary column
• 7:59
  Speaker 4: or the military casualty list in the newspapers. Then he
• 8:02
  Speaker 4: fixes up some cheap article of merchandise with appropriate engraving,
• 8:05
  Speaker 4: and calls on.
• 8:06
  Speaker 5: The friends and relatives of the deceased.
• 8:08
  Speaker 4: If pretends to know nothing about the death of the
• 8:10
  Speaker 4: person whom he claims placed the order for the merchandise.
• 8:13
  Speaker 4: In almost every case, the friend or relative agrees to
• 8:15
  Speaker 4: pay for the articles at some exorbitant price.
• 8:18
  Speaker 5: For the con man. It's a lucrative racket for the public,
• 8:21
  Speaker 5: A vicious One.
• 8:22
  Speaker 4: Wednesday, December fifteenth, Ben and I looked up an informant,
• 8:26
  Speaker 4: a former con man.
• 8:28
  Speaker 10: All right, hangar it fellas been business for two months
• 8:31
  Speaker 10: doing fine.
• 8:32
  Speaker 5: Wait, hang of it looks great.
• 8:34
  Speaker 10: Jed's nice, said a minus Braby laundry and start Los Angeles.
• 8:37
  Speaker 11: That's why advertise.
• 8:39
  Speaker 5: Hey, you don't think that's too broad, do you?
• 8:41
  Speaker 9: Oh?
• 8:41
  Speaker 4: I don't think so, Jed. You've got some nice equipment here,
• 8:44
  Speaker 4: baby laundry. How'd you ever get started?
• 8:46
  Speaker 12: By law?
• 8:47
  Speaker 10: Stap me up with the loan, says you got tired
• 8:49
  Speaker 10: of me trying to sell bum watches.
• 8:51
  Speaker 4: It's a good break for you, Jed. So you got
• 8:53
  Speaker 4: a couple of minutes we'd like to talk.
• 8:54
  Speaker 5: To you think, come on back here? Okay?
• 8:56
  Speaker 6: Fine?
• 8:56
  Speaker 9: Thanks?
• 8:58
  Speaker 10: Yeah, squared away, living a solid life. I'm bad at all,
• 9:02
  Speaker 10: you know.
• 9:02
  Speaker 11: It surprised me.
• 9:03
  Speaker 5: Do you ever see any of the old gang, Jed?
• 9:05
  Speaker 12: Not much?
• 9:06
  Speaker 10: No, tell me old drifters look me up now, and
• 9:09
  Speaker 10: I don't.
• 9:09
  Speaker 5: Try to touch me. I'll go hey old enough, Yeah,
• 9:19
  Speaker 5: thank you. Okay, fellows, what can I do for you?
• 9:24
  Speaker 4: Well, you'd like to know how close you got your
• 9:25
  Speaker 4: ear to the ground, Jed. It was a gang of
• 9:27
  Speaker 4: bunks in town.
• 9:27
  Speaker 5: They're working hard.
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: What pitch they they're working the old bits casually lists.
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: But maybe you might be able to help us.
• 9:33
  Speaker 6: I know how long have been going The last couple
• 9:36
  Speaker 6: of weeks and half a dozen reports on him that's
• 9:38
  Speaker 6: one thing they never could tab me for abitua record,
• 9:41
  Speaker 6: lousiest record there is.
• 9:42
  Speaker 5: Can you do any force?
• 9:44
  Speaker 6: I heard one little rumble about it or five guys
• 9:47
  Speaker 6: in the corn mob. All right, we know that, Jed.
• 9:50
  Speaker 6: Where can we look for you know my position?
• 9:52
  Speaker 5: I quit the game.
• 9:53
  Speaker 6: I quit only contacts I make there when some of
• 9:55
  Speaker 6: the old boys come around.
• 9:56
  Speaker 5: For a touch.
• 9:57
  Speaker 6: How much you heard about the game? What I said?
• 9:59
  Speaker 6: There's four or five of them out of Middle West.
• 10:01
  Speaker 6: I think you got any idea at all where we
• 10:03
  Speaker 6: could start looking. Well, I can start checking for you.
• 10:06
  Speaker 6: You nail any of them, you i't got to fund
• 10:08
  Speaker 6: them before we can arrest them. Jud Yeah, Well, as
• 10:11
  Speaker 6: I say, when I quit the game, I quit. But
• 10:13
  Speaker 6: maybe I can take a few soundings for you. Can't
• 10:16
  Speaker 6: promise anything. I'm strictly on helping up the.
• 10:18
  Speaker 5: Okay, Judge, you know where to get in touch with
• 10:21
  Speaker 5: this will appreciate.
• 10:21
  Speaker 6: Anything you do, and well you help me plenty of times,
• 10:24
  Speaker 6: Fellows wouldn't hurt a bit to tab that bunch.
• 10:26
  Speaker 5: I'll walk out with you.
• 10:30
  Speaker 6: Yeah see, you've got all the machines going baby Lamby
• 10:33
  Speaker 6: business must be pretty good.
• 10:34
  Speaker 5: Huh.
• 10:34
  Speaker 10: It's a step of comodity follows. It's always need a
• 10:38
  Speaker 10: fresh change.
• 10:39
  Speaker 5: Just mut Yeah. I look at this, well, just look
• 10:43
  Speaker 5: at the size of it. Yeah.
• 10:45
  Speaker 10: Do you ever see anyings so small in your life?
• 10:47
  Speaker 5: It's cute? Huh yeah, what is it?
• 10:49
  Speaker 11: No kind of sakers?
• 10:50
  Speaker 5: I think let's see a label here.
• 10:52
  Speaker 13: Uh yeah, mother Greg Silper Silkers kids things.
• 10:57
  Speaker 5: It should give me.
• 10:58
  Speaker 12: A wallet, you know.
• 11:00
  Speaker 4: She reminds, well, check the office while we're here, Ben,
• 11:01
  Speaker 4: plaize your phone.
• 11:02
  Speaker 12: Jo, Yeah, right over there on the wall.
• 11:03
  Speaker 5: You gotta change. Yeah, thank you.
• 11:05
  Speaker 10: I have.
• 11:21
  Speaker 13: City Hall two five Bunco fugitive Brian Joe Friday.
• 11:30
  Speaker 5: Time anything doing?
• 11:31
  Speaker 6: Yeah, Joe, I think we might have a lead on
• 11:33
  Speaker 6: those bunks working in the obituary racking.
• 11:35
  Speaker 5: What do you got?
• 11:36
  Speaker 13: They reached a woman in Highland Park.
• 11:38
  Speaker 5: Where are you baby laundry?
• 11:40
  Speaker 6: Oh well, it's a Missus Westerly. Her daughter was killed
• 11:42
  Speaker 6: in an auto accident last night. They came around and
• 11:45
  Speaker 6: sold a woman to watch her daughter was supposed to
• 11:47
  Speaker 6: order also a necklace and.
• 11:49
  Speaker 13: Pen and pencil. Sent two hundred and fifty dollars usual.
• 11:52
  Speaker 5: Jim, did you talk to this Missus Westerley?
• 11:54
  Speaker 6: Yeah, we took the report. The man's description is m
• 11:56
  Speaker 6: all the rest all match up?
• 11:57
  Speaker 5: What's the lead?
• 11:58
  Speaker 13: She watched the man when he left her. Yeah, he
• 12:00
  Speaker 13: got an attack the cab.
• 12:04
  Speaker 4: Ten thirty am, while Sergeants Bryant and Hullery got out
• 12:07
  Speaker 4: a broadcast on the suspect, Ben and I drove to
• 12:09
  Speaker 4: the offices of the cab company, where we contacted the
• 12:11
  Speaker 4: special agent. He helped us check the way bills for
• 12:14
  Speaker 4: the preceding night. On the way bill for Cab two thirteen,
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: we found the trip listed starting point the intersection nearest
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: the westerly home destination, a hotel on South Flower Street.
• 12:24
  Speaker 4: We went to the hotel and interviewed the desk clerk.
• 12:26
  Speaker 4: From the description we gave him, he identified the man
• 12:28
  Speaker 4: as Fred G. Norris from Minneapolis. At least that's the
• 12:31
  Speaker 4: way he'd signed the hotel register. The clerk told us
• 12:33
  Speaker 4: Norris wasn't in. We had him show us Norris's room.
• 12:37
  Speaker 4: In his suitcases, we found quantities of dime store costume,
• 12:40
  Speaker 4: jewelry monogrammed, and two dozen cheap wrist watches and wallets
• 12:44
  Speaker 4: and handbags done in poor quality imitation leather, also a
• 12:47
  Speaker 4: portable engraving set. The clerk told us that Norris was
• 12:50
  Speaker 4: expected back shortly. We told him to say nothing to
• 12:52
  Speaker 4: the suspect. When he arrived, we called the office and
• 12:54
  Speaker 4: arranged for a stakeout at the hotel, and we drove
• 12:57
  Speaker 4: back to the office one pm. They told us Norris
• 13:00
  Speaker 4: had been recognized from his description and picked up by
• 13:02
  Speaker 4: Unit seventeen R on the way back to his hotel.
• 13:04
  Speaker 5: Shortly before noon.
• 13:06
  Speaker 4: Ben and I joined Sergeant Hullary and Brant in the
• 13:08
  Speaker 4: interrogation room, where they were questioning the suspect. He looked
• 13:10
  Speaker 4: about forty years old, white male American, about six feet tall,
• 13:13
  Speaker 4: one hundred and seventy pounds.
• 13:15
  Speaker 5: He would admit nothing. Brian kept questioning him.
• 13:18
  Speaker 6: You're wasting our time on your own, Norris. Face it,
• 13:21
  Speaker 6: you were playing a rough game and you're loss now.
• 13:23
  Speaker 5: How about it. You gotta feel pretty silly when you
• 13:25
  Speaker 5: find out you got the wrong guy. How do you
• 13:26
  Speaker 5: work for Fred? You can do what you want about
• 13:28
  Speaker 5: investigating me. You're having a thing to hold me on.
• 13:30
  Speaker 5: Here's no just wasting any more time.
• 13:31
  Speaker 6: You got that list of victims, Yeah, these are the
• 13:35
  Speaker 6: ones that tab Norris.
• 13:36
  Speaker 5: Thank you a couple more years, Joe, Thanks Mann.
• 13:54
  Speaker 4: Hello, miss Bergstrom there, please Oh, it's Sergeant Friday, Miss
• 13:57
  Speaker 4: Birks from Bunco Detail. Yeah, we picked up a suspect
• 14:00
  Speaker 4: we'd like to see if you can identify him. It'll
• 14:02
  Speaker 4: be all right if we send a card for you
• 14:03
  Speaker 4: right now. A right, fine, thank you very much.
• 14:07
  Speaker 9: Bye.
• 14:20
  Speaker 5: Look, I can't sider all day. I have business to
• 14:22
  Speaker 5: attend to. I have noise. He's on the phone.
• 14:24
  Speaker 4: Oh, there's crolling there. Please this Sergeant Friday call him
• 14:27
  Speaker 4: was croning Bunco Detail. Yes, ma'am, that's right. I'm sorry
• 14:31
  Speaker 4: to disturb you, but we have a suspect and custody
• 14:32
  Speaker 4: down here. Yes, ma'am, yes, sergeant, could you come down
• 14:36
  Speaker 4: the city hall right away?
• 14:37
  Speaker 5: Sergeant will you hold on just a minute please, thank you? Yeah, Nourse,
• 14:42
  Speaker 5: you got MEDPM.
• 14:46
  Speaker 4: We informed the victims that the special show up had
• 14:48
  Speaker 4: been canceled, and we called in a stenographer and had
• 14:51
  Speaker 4: her take Fred Norris's statement. In addition to listing the crimes,
• 14:54
  Speaker 4: he committee also told us that there were six men
• 14:56
  Speaker 4: in the Bunco gang besides himself.
• 14:58
  Speaker 5: He gave us the names and descriptions of each one
• 15:00
  Speaker 5: of them.
• 15:00
  Speaker 4: He stated that they'd been operating in Los Angeles for
• 15:02
  Speaker 4: the past four months.
• 15:04
  Speaker 5: Noris said that none of them had ever met the
• 15:06
  Speaker 5: leader of their Bunco gang.
• 15:07
  Speaker 4: The only contact they had with the leader was through
• 15:09
  Speaker 4: one of the older gang members, a man with the
• 15:11
  Speaker 4: name of Wesley Fisher. Before Norris was taken a Central
• 15:14
  Speaker 4: jail for booking, he gave us the address of the
• 15:15
  Speaker 4: house where he had been living with the other gang members.
• 15:18
  Speaker 4: Norris's information on the suspects was checked through R and I.
• 15:21
  Speaker 4: We got one mate, Wesley Fisher. He had won prior
• 15:24
  Speaker 4: arrest two years before on a grand theft charge, but
• 15:27
  Speaker 4: he'd been released for lack of evidence.
• 15:29
  Speaker 5: Three point fifteen PM.
• 15:30
  Speaker 4: Together with Sergeants Ullery and Bryant and two men from
• 15:32
  Speaker 4: Metro Squad, we drove out to the address given us
• 15:35
  Speaker 4: by Fred Norris. Turned out to be a neat looking
• 15:37
  Speaker 4: bungalow in the West Hollywood area.
• 15:42
  Speaker 13: That's good.
• 15:48
  Speaker 5: Would you take the front nor Joe?
• 15:50
  Speaker 11: Yeah?
• 15:50
  Speaker 5: Say Tom, Yeah, you want to have Johnson and Brewer
• 15:52
  Speaker 5: cover the back of the place. Blink k Joe, Moury
• 15:54
  Speaker 5: and I oklaver with a solemn bank. Let's go meet.
• 16:05
  Speaker 9: Here.
• 16:06
  Speaker 5: Yes we'am, no, ma'am.
• 16:12
  Speaker 12: We want to see the tenants.
• 16:16
  Speaker 5: That's all.
• 16:29
  Speaker 3: You are listening to dragnet authentic stories of your police
• 16:33
  Speaker 3: force in action.
• 16:42
  Speaker 4: Wednesday, December fifteenth, four pm, we made a thorough check
• 16:45
  Speaker 4: of the house which the six suspects had just vacated.
• 16:47
  Speaker 4: We found nothing that would help us. We talked to
• 16:49
  Speaker 4: the owner of the house where the suspects had been living.
• 16:51
  Speaker 4: She told us that she'd rented the place furnished to
• 16:53
  Speaker 4: them about three months before. She identified Wesley Fisher's mugshot,
• 16:57
  Speaker 4: but she told us that he'd used the name of
• 16:58
  Speaker 4: Charles Wilder. She also recognized each of the other gang
• 17:01
  Speaker 4: members from the descriptions that Fred Norris had given us.
• 17:04
  Speaker 4: She told us that while they were living there, the
• 17:05
  Speaker 4: men seemed to keep odd hours, and that they had
• 17:07
  Speaker 4: a car. She told us that she'd taken the license
• 17:09
  Speaker 4: number of the car the day the men moved in.
• 17:11
  Speaker 4: The number was checked with DMV. It was registered in
• 17:14
  Speaker 4: the name of Wesley Fisher ten o eight California Street.
• 17:16
  Speaker 5: It's a transient hotel.
• 17:18
  Speaker 4: The manager told us Fisher had moved about nine months ago.
• 17:21
  Speaker 4: Was no forwarding address. We got out on all points
• 17:24
  Speaker 4: bulletin on Wesley Fisher requesting that all occupants in his
• 17:26
  Speaker 4: car be held for investigation of grand theft. Thursday, December sixteenth,
• 17:30
  Speaker 4: eight am, Alore Bryant, Ben and I met with Captain McCauley.
• 17:34
  Speaker 14: Were they getting all this junk? They're palming off? Where's
• 17:36
  Speaker 14: the sauce of supply?
• 17:37
  Speaker 6: The guy we picked up Norris told us they brought
• 17:40
  Speaker 6: a good supply of it out with him from the Middlewest.
• 17:42
  Speaker 6: That hotel room Norris had downtown, they were using that
• 17:44
  Speaker 6: for a warehouse. They didn't want to keep this stuff
• 17:46
  Speaker 6: at the house they were living in.
• 17:47
  Speaker 5: How are they hitting any possibility of stakehouts? No, not
• 17:50
  Speaker 5: Unless we cover every name in the columns.
• 17:52
  Speaker 14: You might have to try it. Something's got to be done.
• 17:56
  Speaker 14: Look at these two more this morning straight out of
• 17:59
  Speaker 14: the obituary.
• 18:00
  Speaker 4: Call him he took one family for ninety dollars, another
• 18:04
  Speaker 4: one for sixty.
• 18:05
  Speaker 6: How about that last run through the stacks office? Help
• 18:07
  Speaker 6: you any and both some more mugs for us. I'm
• 18:10
  Speaker 6: going to show them to the victims this morning.
• 18:11
  Speaker 5: How about this Norris? You think he's come up with everything?
• 18:14
  Speaker 6: We were up talking to him again at count of
• 18:16
  Speaker 6: jail yesterday. Didn't have anything new. Skipping We'll dropped in
• 18:18
  Speaker 6: at the Sheriff's Bunco detail. They've got one new case, Ammo.
• 18:21
  Speaker 6: Description comes close to one of the guys. The victim
• 18:24
  Speaker 6: was the father of a Navy flyer lost overseas. He
• 18:27
  Speaker 6: sold him a gold watch chain that his son was
• 18:29
  Speaker 6: supposed to have bought him for a present.
• 18:30
  Speaker 5: Solid brass.
• 18:32
  Speaker 4: The sheriff's man got anything new, and we've been working
• 18:34
  Speaker 4: pretty close with him.
• 18:34
  Speaker 5: Nothing new.
• 18:36
  Speaker 14: Excuse me, Uncle fyodaitive, Kat McCauley.
• 18:42
  Speaker 5: Oh yeah, hold on you Friday, Oh thank you? Yeah, Joe,
• 18:49
  Speaker 5: this is Jake.
• 18:49
  Speaker 13: Can you meet me out of my place?
• 18:51
  Speaker 5: What do you got?
• 18:51
  Speaker 9: Name?
• 18:52
  Speaker 13: Wesley Fisher mean anything to you?
• 18:58
  Speaker 4: Eight thirty am, Bet and I drove and met with
• 19:00
  Speaker 4: jud at his home, who was still in his bathroom
• 19:02
  Speaker 4: when he met us at the door. He told us
• 19:04
  Speaker 4: he had an important appointment downtown at nine o'clock and.
• 19:06
  Speaker 5: He was in a hurry. He talked to him while
• 19:08
  Speaker 5: he shaved.
• 19:09
  Speaker 6: Hope your fellows don't mind, can't miss this day, lying
• 19:14
  Speaker 6: up some new business, you know.
• 19:16
  Speaker 5: I'm all right, Jed Gray, Yeah, I got to move
• 19:19
  Speaker 5: fast on these things before they cool, you know, work
• 19:22
  Speaker 5: to stay with us, Jed. What's the story.
• 19:26
  Speaker 10: Well, I don't know why it's worse a brother. Max
• 19:29
  Speaker 10: called me this morning, Remember my brother, Max, didn't she No,
• 19:33
  Speaker 10: I don't think so. And I watched the Pink Pad
• 19:36
  Speaker 10: Barn South May.
• 19:39
  Speaker 6: When you were in to see me the other day
• 19:40
  Speaker 6: about those grifties you want, I gave my brother a tumble.
• 19:42
  Speaker 5: On it told him keep an eye open, I amn't
• 19:46
  Speaker 5: a tall one. Well, yeah, here you go, thanks, I'll
• 19:51
  Speaker 5: steam nothing.
• 19:55
  Speaker 6: Would Max come up with, Well, he's night brought tender
• 19:58
  Speaker 6: the parch, you know. And last night he spied a
• 20:02
  Speaker 6: couple of guys at the bar had some day or newspapers.
• 20:06
  Speaker 5: Uh huh.
• 20:08
  Speaker 6: They were sitting there with the papers turned to the obituary column,
• 20:12
  Speaker 6: checking off names, writing on addresses.
• 20:16
  Speaker 5: Max is pretty sharp that way. Spotted them right off
• 20:20
  Speaker 5: whousing razor. Does Max know these too? Many? Spotted?
• 20:25
  Speaker 6: No, not by name, but he knew the want of
• 20:27
  Speaker 6: them lived in the hotel next door. At the bar
• 20:31
  Speaker 6: the hotel night Clark coming for a beer and Max
• 20:33
  Speaker 6: asked him about it. He tab one of the guys
• 20:36
  Speaker 6: as Wesley Fisher. Did he have anything on the other
• 20:39
  Speaker 6: man now? Clerk told Max he doesn't live at the hotel,
• 20:42
  Speaker 6: but spends a lot of time there with Fisher.
• 20:46
  Speaker 5: Had he seen Fisher and this other guy at the
• 20:47
  Speaker 5: bar before.
• 20:49
  Speaker 10: Yeah, Max has been there before. Got a lasted up
• 20:52
  Speaker 10: a couple of times.
• 20:54
  Speaker 4: Say would it be okay to contact your brother at
• 20:56
  Speaker 4: his home, Jed, We don't want to contact him at
• 20:59
  Speaker 4: the bar.
• 21:00
  Speaker 5: Yeah, sure, thing gets your dressed. Soon as they finished it,
• 21:04
  Speaker 5: it just moved. I think. I don't know, Hope. I
• 21:09
  Speaker 5: didn't get you guys out here for nothing.
• 21:11
  Speaker 6: We appreciated, Jed, looks good. It seems to fet. That
• 21:15
  Speaker 6: hotel down there, it's a hangout. God, man, angles are
• 21:18
  Speaker 6: all there. Let's hope Fisher is. Eight fifty three am.
• 21:24
  Speaker 6: We arrived at the hotel on South Main Street. We
• 21:27
  Speaker 6: checked with a desk clerk who told us that Wesley
• 21:28
  Speaker 6: Fisher had room thirty seven.
• 21:30
  Speaker 4: As far as he knew, Fisher was in his room.
• 21:32
  Speaker 4: We got a pass key from the clerk and went
• 21:34
  Speaker 4: up to room thirty seven, where we found Fisher and
• 21:36
  Speaker 4: another man. He identified himself as Raymond Breen, one of
• 21:39
  Speaker 4: the gang members identified by Fred Norris. We also found
• 21:42
  Speaker 4: a small supply of cheap watches and pen and pencil
• 21:44
  Speaker 4: sets in Fisher's car, was parked near the hotel was impounded.
• 21:49
  Speaker 4: We took both suspects back to the city Hall. We
• 21:51
  Speaker 4: questioned them separately and the interrogation room. Breen was first,
• 21:54
  Speaker 4: but he refused to answer our questions. He was taken
• 21:57
  Speaker 4: back to the squad room and Wesley Fisher was brought in.
• 22:01
  Speaker 4: Sit down, Fishing, thank.
• 22:02
  Speaker 6: You because you know why you're here.
• 22:06
  Speaker 5: Oh, I haven't the least idea All right, then we'll
• 22:09
  Speaker 5: show you. Do you know Fred Norris?
• 22:12
  Speaker 15: Fred Norris name sounds a little familiar. Can't quite place it,
• 22:16
  Speaker 15: and he places you pretty well. He says he worked
• 22:18
  Speaker 15: with you and bring up till a couple of days ago.
• 22:20
  Speaker 15: That's so yeah, says he lived with you in that
• 22:22
  Speaker 15: bungalow in West Hollywood.
• 22:24
  Speaker 5: That's so nice, West Hollywood. When was that two days ago? Fishy?
• 22:30
  Speaker 6: Your land lady identified your mugs, even had the license
• 22:32
  Speaker 6: number of your car.
• 22:34
  Speaker 5: What's a proved, gentlemen.
• 22:35
  Speaker 6: Prose you're lying you and bring work together? You did
• 22:38
  Speaker 6: work with Norrise. You're part of one of the filthiest
• 22:40
  Speaker 6: rackets going. Gentlemen, you're making a bad mistake.
• 22:44
  Speaker 4: No, there's no mistake, Fisher. Your picture has been identified
• 22:46
  Speaker 4: about at least a half a dozen victims. Now you
• 22:47
  Speaker 4: can go on playing choy all you want, but we
• 22:49
  Speaker 4: can prove that the pen and pencil sets that you
• 22:50
  Speaker 4: sold some of the victims are identical with the ones
• 22:52
  Speaker 4: we find.
• 22:52
  Speaker 5: In your car. I haven't any idea what you're talking about.
• 22:55
  Speaker 5: Believe me, that's the truth. You wouldn't know the truth
• 22:57
  Speaker 5: of it followed you, mister.
• 22:59
  Speaker 4: Now, look, maybe you're a great at conning old men
• 23:01
  Speaker 4: and young girls, but don't try to pass any of
• 23:02
  Speaker 4: it here just.
• 23:03
  Speaker 5: A moment now, you listen. You to a bit thief.
• 23:05
  Speaker 4: I couldn't begin to tell you off of the rocking
• 23:07
  Speaker 4: things you've been pulling off in this town for the
• 23:08
  Speaker 4: past three months. A young girl who lost your boyfriend
• 23:11
  Speaker 4: overseas at Widow Ott in Hollywood, the old man in
• 23:13
  Speaker 4: Highland Park whose wife passed away.
• 23:15
  Speaker 5: You must have felt pretty sharp cheating them out of
• 23:17
  Speaker 5: a few bucks. Maybe you don't remember, mister, but we do.
• 23:19
  Speaker 5: When they do, you're going to pay for him. You
• 23:22
  Speaker 5: all through. I'm through, Fisher, you're just starting. I have
• 23:25
  Speaker 5: nothing further to say, gentlemen. You can talk to my lawyer.
• 23:28
  Speaker 5: We'll give them your new address. Yes, County Jail.
• 23:33
  Speaker 4: Suspects Wesley Fisher and Raymond Breen were booked and transported
• 23:36
  Speaker 4: to the County jail. Both of them were positively identified.
• 23:39
  Speaker 5: By the victims.
• 23:39
  Speaker 4: Warrants were obtained for the three suspects, Norris, Fisher, and Breen.
• 23:43
  Speaker 4: They were arraigned and held a answer at a preliminary
• 23:45
  Speaker 4: hearing on several counts of grand theft. During the next
• 23:48
  Speaker 4: two weeks and through the Christmas holidays, identical complaints of
• 23:51
  Speaker 4: bunco operations continued to come in. Friends and relatives of
• 23:55
  Speaker 4: lately deceased persons were still being victimized. The gang's operations
• 23:59
  Speaker 4: continued as you. There was only one change. The crime
• 24:02
  Speaker 4: report showed that a woman was now operating in the
• 24:04
  Speaker 4: obituary racket along with the male suspects. Christmas came and
• 24:08
  Speaker 4: went on New Year's Eve, Ben and I were assigned
• 24:10
  Speaker 4: to stand by duty. A few minutes before eight pm,
• 24:13
  Speaker 4: we got a call from the County Jail that Wesley
• 24:14
  Speaker 4: Fisher wanted to see us.
• 24:16
  Speaker 5: Went to the tenth floor of the jail interview room.
• 24:19
  Speaker 5: I'm not going to take all the heat. They're ain't
• 24:21
  Speaker 5: just as deep as I am.
• 24:22
  Speaker 15: If they can't do right by me, I'll square it
• 24:24
  Speaker 15: up myself.
• 24:25
  Speaker 5: I tell you.
• 24:25
  Speaker 15: Everything I know or ahead vision. What isn't Her name's
• 24:28
  Speaker 15: Betty McGraw. She's the one he'd been looking for. The
• 24:31
  Speaker 15: whole idea was hers.
• 24:32
  Speaker 5: She planned it out, She got everybody together. It was
• 24:34
  Speaker 5: her show. Where can we find her? Two thirteen Foster
• 24:37
  Speaker 5: apart my.
• 24:37
  Speaker 4: Eight Wesley Fisher gave a complete statement of all his
• 24:42
  Speaker 4: crimes and also implicated the other members. He told us
• 24:45
  Speaker 4: Betty McGraw was his girlfriend. She'd come up with the
• 24:47
  Speaker 4: idea for the obituary racket. She gathered them in together
• 24:50
  Speaker 4: for the job, and it had been planned that she
• 24:52
  Speaker 4: was to stay in the background in.
• 24:54
  Speaker 5: Case of trouble.
• 24:55
  Speaker 4: She would furnish aid to the gang members in the
• 24:56
  Speaker 4: form of bail, bond, money, and lawyers. She received a
• 24:59
  Speaker 4: percentage of the take from each of the gang members.
• 25:02
  Speaker 4: We checked her through R and I. She had a
• 25:03
  Speaker 4: criminal history dating back eleven years. We obtained her mugshot.
• 25:07
  Speaker 4: Ten thirty pm, we went out to the address Fisher
• 25:10
  Speaker 4: gave us Some ain't answered the door. She told us
• 25:12
  Speaker 4: that the McGraw woman was not there, that she'd gone
• 25:14
  Speaker 4: to a New Year's Eve celebration at a downtown hotel.
• 25:17
  Speaker 5: It was eleven fifteen when we got there.
• 25:19
  Speaker 4: We identified ourselves to the special officer at the hotel
• 25:21
  Speaker 4: and showed him the mugshot of Betty McGraw.
• 25:24
  Speaker 5: He thought he'd seen her at the main bar. We
• 25:26
  Speaker 5: started looking.
• 25:31
  Speaker 9: Her.
• 25:31
  Speaker 12: Dude, pack a man? Yeah, excuse me? Please?
• 25:35
  Speaker 5: Can I get through here?
• 25:36
  Speaker 12: Thank you? Sign hid Joe. That's why I think we
• 25:40
  Speaker 12: get through.
• 25:41
  Speaker 9: Okay?
• 25:41
  Speaker 12: Do you see her yet?
• 25:42
  Speaker 10: No?
• 25:42
  Speaker 12: I jam in there. I can't see a thing, but
• 25:45
  Speaker 12: how I am I yeah, and you'll see that a
• 25:48
  Speaker 12: pan of the bar there and a black man. Oh yeah,
• 25:50
  Speaker 12: not sair? Would you let her through her pace?
• 25:54
  Speaker 10: All right?
• 25:55
  Speaker 11: Jo?
• 25:56
  Speaker 5: Right behind you.
• 26:00
  Speaker 12: Named Betty McGraw. Is you don't name Betty McGraw, Betty mag.
• 26:05
  Speaker 5: I don't know you. Why any police officers?
• 26:09
  Speaker 12: I see you outside?
• 26:13
  Speaker 5: That's where the body is there.
• 26:15
  Speaker 12: Let's go lady outside, the boy outside?
• 26:19
  Speaker 9: What do you know?
• 26:19
  Speaker 12: That was the bar outside? O? Kaevin, Come on, Reddy,
• 26:22
  Speaker 12: I don't know you at all.
• 26:24
  Speaker 5: I'm not going.
• 26:25
  Speaker 12: I'm not going. So you just trying to get through this.
• 26:36
  Speaker 12: We'll have to wait again. Well happy now there, Joe?
• 26:40
  Speaker 9: Yeah?
• 26:41
  Speaker 12: Ay you maybe next year we'll have it all. I
• 26:46
  Speaker 12: know why, No, it's crime and I know that song
• 26:52
  Speaker 12: that's no reason.
• 26:53
  Speaker 5: I just cry every play it no reason that all
• 27:00
  Speaker 5: you've got one this year, Lady, Come on.
• 27:08
  Speaker 2: The story you've just heard was true, only the names
• 27:11
  Speaker 2: were changed to protect the innocent.
• 27:14
  Speaker 3: On March twenty eighth, trial was held in Superior Court
• 27:16
  Speaker 3: Department ninety three, City and County of Los Angeles, State
• 27:19
  Speaker 3: of California. In a moment the results of that trial,
• 27:29
  Speaker 3: the remaining members of the Bunco gang were apprehended and
• 27:32
  Speaker 3: brought to trial. All of them, including the gang leader
• 27:35
  Speaker 3: Elizabeth McGraw, were tried and convicted of grand theft. They
• 27:38
  Speaker 3: are now serving their terms in the state penitentiary. You
• 27:47
  Speaker 3: have just heard Dragnet, a series of authentic cases from
• 27:50
  Speaker 3: official files. Technical advice comes from the Office of Chief
• 27:54
  Speaker 3: of Police W. H. Parker, Los Angeles Police Department.
• 28:04
  Speaker 5: Coming up with the people. Then screen Director's Playhouse on.
• 28:07
  Speaker 11: NBC Welcome Back.
• 28:17
  Speaker 1: This is one of those episodes I absolutely love and
• 28:21
  Speaker 1: it shows the strength of Dragnet as a series. We
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: deal with a lot of murders on this podcast. Maybe
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: ninety five percent of our episodes involve a killing of
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: some sort, and that's understandable as those tend to be
• 28:35
  Speaker 1: crimes that really are interest and fascination as human beings,
• 28:40
  Speaker 1: but Dragnet didn't always have to do that. It could
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: tell stories about crimes that were less violent and still
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: make them interesting because it's about the investigation the process.
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: I think this one is particularly great because they managed
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: to tell a story that's about a crime that's not
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: violent but is also a early reprehensible. So from that
• 29:03
  Speaker 1: very first heartbreaking scene where they're interviewing the girlfriend of
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: the deceased soldier, the audience is invested in them actually
• 29:14
  Speaker 1: finding the perpetrators, and there are so many great scenes.
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: I love the subtle way Friday pressured the first suspect
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: captured of just calling the witnesses right in front of them. Also,
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: Friday was far less likely to speech about a criminal's
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: contact than he would be in the nineteen sixties Dragnat,
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: but I think that an early example of him doing
• 29:37
  Speaker 1: something like that was in that confrontation with Wesley Fisher
• 29:41
  Speaker 1: and the arrest of Betty McGraw is probably one of
• 29:45
  Speaker 1: my favorite closing scenes from the fifties series, and this
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: one works even better on television. But whether it's TV
• 29:53
  Speaker 1: or radio, this is just one of the finest episodes
• 29:57
  Speaker 1: of dragnat all right ever, so bra Yes, I made
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: it back to Boise and had a relatively smooth trip.
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: I had a really good time at Podfast, met some
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: people and picked up a lot of good information I'm
• 30:12
  Speaker 1: working to implement what I can right now, and a
• 30:15
  Speaker 1: few really just great conversations. I also visited SeaWorld first
• 30:21
  Speaker 1: time and got to see some amazing animals, and honestly,
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: that's my focus. There's a lot of coasters. I only
• 30:30
  Speaker 1: rode one coaster, which just kind of reminded me that
• 30:34
  Speaker 1: I'm not really into most roller coasters. I was smart
• 30:38
  Speaker 1: enough to avoid the ones that turned me upside down,
• 30:42
  Speaker 1: but I found out that I really don't like the
• 30:45
  Speaker 1: ones that turned me on my side either. But the
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: animals were just magnificent, but I didn't mind much. The
• 30:52
  Speaker 1: flight wet well, although I nearly missed it because they
• 30:56
  Speaker 1: were determined to get off the ground early and get
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: in early to Boyse. So now we're back and getting
• 31:04
  Speaker 1: used to being in Boise. But I'm glad to be home.
• 31:08
  Speaker 13: All right.
• 31:09
  Speaker 1: Well, now it's time to thank our Patreon supporter of
• 31:12
  Speaker 1: the day. I want to thank Carol Ann, who's been
• 31:14
  Speaker 1: one of our Patreon supporters since April twenty nineteen, currently
• 31:18
  Speaker 1: supporting the podcast at the Shawmus level of four dollars
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: or more per month. Thanks so much for your support,
• 31:24
  Speaker 1: Carol Anne, and that will actually do it for today.
• 31:27
  Speaker 1: If you're enjoying the podcast, please follow us using your
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: favorite podcast software and be sure to rate and review
• 31:34
  Speaker 1: the podcast wherever you download it from. We'll be back
• 31:38
  Speaker 1: next Saturday with another episode of Dragnet, but join us
• 31:42
  Speaker 1: back here on Monday for the Adventures of the falcon where.
• 31:47
  Speaker 16: One hair, blue eyes, flight foot nine, small moullin right
• 31:51
  Speaker 16: cheeck V shaped scar on left christ V shaped scar.
• 31:55
  Speaker 16: That's funny. What's so funny about it? Sounds like a
• 31:58
  Speaker 16: boy I used to know, a San France Us Well, well,
• 32:01
  Speaker 16: couldn't beat him. Last I heard, Mike was serving fire
• 32:04
  Speaker 16: Attennis san Quentin. Mac Who Mac McKenna? What made you
• 32:08
  Speaker 16: think it's him?
• 32:09
  Speaker 11: That's scar?
• 32:10
  Speaker 17: He got a knifing. But it couldn't be the same one,
• 32:13
  Speaker 17: couldn't it. Suppose I told you that mister McKenna is
• 32:17
  Speaker 17: now guesting in our fair city. He's what he got
• 32:20
  Speaker 17: it from a stooley last week. He's living with his
• 32:22
  Speaker 17: wife at the Bellmore no, it sounds too easy. Well,
• 32:25
  Speaker 17: I'm gonna pick him up just for luck.
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: I hope you'll be with us then in the meantime,
• 32:30
  Speaker 1: send your comments to Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot net,
• 32:35
  Speaker 1: follow us on Twitter at Radio Detectives, and check us
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: out on Instagram, Instagram, dot com, slash Great Detectives From
• 32:45
  Speaker 1: Boise Ataho. This is your host, Adam Graham signing off.