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Dragnet: The Big Drills (EP4763) · The Great Detectives Present Dragnet (Old Time Radio)

• 0:28
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the great Detectives of Old time Radio from Boise, Idaho.
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: This is your host, Adam Graham. In a moment, we're
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: going to bring you this week's episode of Dragonnet. But
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: first I want to encourage you, if you're enjoying the podcast,
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: to follow us using your favorite podcast software. Today's program
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: is brought you in part by the financial support of
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: our listeners. You can support the show on a one
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: time basis by mailing donation to Adam Graham peel box
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: one five nine one three. That's peelbox one five nine thirteen, Boise,
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: Altaho eight three seven one five. But now here is
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: the one hundredth radio episode of Dragnet from May tenth,
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: nineteen fifty one.
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: The Big Drills.
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: The story you were about to hear is true, only
• 1:33
  Speaker 3: the names have been changed to protect the innocent. You're
• 1:44
  Speaker 3: a detective sergeant. You're assigned to burglary detail. For the
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: past eighteen weeks, a gang of safe men have been
• 1:50
  Speaker 3: breaking into large grocery stores all over the city.
• 1:53
  Speaker 4: They work fast. You can't localize their operations.
• 1:57
  Speaker 5: Your job get.
• 1:58
  Speaker 6: Them Dragnet the documented drama of an actual crime. While
• 2:08
  Speaker 6: the next thirty minutes in cooperation with the Los Angeles
• 2:10
  Speaker 6: Police Department.
• 2:12
  Speaker 5: You will travel step by step on the side of
• 2:14
  Speaker 5: the law through an.
• 2:14
  Speaker 6: Actual case transcribed from official police files. From beginning to end,
• 2:19
  Speaker 6: from crime to punishment. Dragnet is the story of your
• 2:22
  Speaker 6: police force and action.
• 2:28
  Speaker 7: It was Wednesday, September sixteenth, was hot in Los Angeles.
• 2:31
  Speaker 7: We're working a day watch out of burgery detail. My
• 2:34
  Speaker 7: partner's Ben Romero. The boss's Captain Wisdom. My name is Friday.
• 2:37
  Speaker 7: It was seven forty five am when I got to
• 2:39
  Speaker 7: the service station on the corner the phone booth.
• 3:05
  Speaker 4: Anyhow two five two four please.
• 3:10
  Speaker 8: Breg Maury Rubles, I.
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: Take this fidy Romero there, Moman, Joe, thank you, Hey Romeo,
• 3:15
  Speaker 4: I'll take two.
• 3:18
  Speaker 8: Romero.
• 3:18
  Speaker 4: Is Friday? Ben?
• 3:19
  Speaker 8: Yeah? Where you've been?
• 3:21
  Speaker 4: Wow? My car again? Something's wrong with that distributor. I'm
• 3:24
  Speaker 4: gonna leave it at the service station and I'll grab
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: a street car down.
• 3:27
  Speaker 8: Huh heyhead again Joe. It's gonna make a thirty seven job.
• 3:30
  Speaker 4: We're at this time.
• 3:31
  Speaker 8: We have some brothers market Melrose and Green drilled us
• 3:33
  Speaker 8: safe and walked out with four hundred and sixty two dollars.
• 3:36
  Speaker 4: Steakhouts are doing a lot of good, aren't they. I'm
• 3:39
  Speaker 4: worn out from last night.
• 3:40
  Speaker 8: I didn't get any sleep. Beat the just that time
• 3:42
  Speaker 8: to go home, brush my teeth when this thing broke.
• 3:44
  Speaker 4: Okay, you said, Melrose and Green.
• 3:46
  Speaker 8: Yeah right, I won't wait for you. I'll go right
• 3:48
  Speaker 8: on out there. Armstrong and Rubles just left right.
• 3:50
  Speaker 4: I can get over there as fast as I can.
• 3:52
  Speaker 8: Oh Man went down here, bright and merrily. Thank you, jobbing.
• 3:55
  Speaker 4: Okay, I'll see you later.
• 3:56
  Speaker 8: Huh oh, Joe just meant it. Gibber just came in
• 3:58
  Speaker 8: the end there right anywhere to Melrose.
• 4:01
  Speaker 9: I's ry.
• 4:02
  Speaker 4: Why do you get back? I want to see you
• 4:03
  Speaker 4: two of my officer right.
• 4:06
  Speaker 8: I guess you heard it?
• 4:07
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I did?
• 4:07
  Speaker 8: Gets you the kail from the dome of his voice.
• 4:09
  Speaker 4: Yeah, sounds a little upset. How's he loved the same way.
• 4:17
  Speaker 4: For eighteen weeks, Ben and I had been assigned to
• 4:19
  Speaker 4: this same case.
• 4:20
  Speaker 7: The burglary gang was victimizing only Wilson Brothers Market throughout
• 4:24
  Speaker 7: the city and in surrounding towns adjacent to the city
• 4:26
  Speaker 7: of Los Angeles.
• 4:27
  Speaker 4: Their criminal activities had given them.
• 4:29
  Speaker 10: Well over one hundred thousand dollars stolen from these various markets,
• 4:33
  Speaker 10: additional officers were assigned from the Metropolitan Division, and the
• 4:36
  Speaker 10: case had grown.
• 4:37
  Speaker 4: To large proportions. It was twelve minutes.
• 4:39
  Speaker 7: Past eight when I arrived at Melrose and Green Streets,
• 4:42
  Speaker 7: the latest Wilson market to be victimized.
• 4:46
  Speaker 4: Same thing, Joe, just like Colore. Yeah the crime, I
• 4:49
  Speaker 4: have fined anything, been here and gone.
• 4:51
  Speaker 10: We found a few particles of claw, probably from the
• 4:53
  Speaker 10: guy's bloods, some metal shavings for spectrographical analysis, same as.
• 4:58
  Speaker 4: On all the other job how the game, the entry,
• 5:00
  Speaker 4: same way on front, looks like a tyren ride the.
• 5:04
  Speaker 10: Door, come about the burglar a line, No problem, there's
• 5:07
  Speaker 10: a ladder.
• 5:07
  Speaker 4: I'm up and take a lot.
• 5:08
  Speaker 8: Yeah, see yeah, I see it.
• 5:18
  Speaker 4: Cut the key leaves again. Huh. Now thing's different, Joe,
• 5:22
  Speaker 4: just exactly the same all around. Really cares if then?
• 5:28
  Speaker 10: Yeah, two hundred and fifty two men on the stakeout
• 5:30
  Speaker 10: last night, and they know just which market to hit.
• 5:33
  Speaker 4: One that isn't covered.
• 5:34
  Speaker 10: When you figure Wilson's got over three hundred stores, we
• 5:37
  Speaker 10: can't cover them all.
• 5:39
  Speaker 4: I think we might have some of the luck we
• 5:40
  Speaker 4: sure overdue. Nobody could be this lucky this long. You
• 5:43
  Speaker 4: know they're out to break the record. I haven't turned
• 5:46
  Speaker 4: up anything to do at all, not so far. I've
• 5:48
  Speaker 4: been looking around. Come on, yeah, Rubles and Armstrong in
• 5:53
  Speaker 4: the store.
• 5:53
  Speaker 10: Yeah, they're taking them back of the store of stock room, employees,
• 5:56
  Speaker 10: locker room.
• 5:56
  Speaker 4: And how much is taken goes you on the phone.
• 5:59
  Speaker 10: Four hundred and sixty two dollars some checks about two
• 6:01
  Speaker 10: hundred dollars worth.
• 6:03
  Speaker 4: Well, this is Wednesday. I suppose the thieves have discontinued
• 6:06
  Speaker 4: the weekend jobs.
• 6:07
  Speaker 10: I don't know.
• 6:08
  Speaker 4: Your guess is as good as mine.
• 6:11
  Speaker 10: Here's a buck, yeah, sure, good clean job. A lot
• 6:16
  Speaker 10: different those first ones.
• 6:17
  Speaker 11: Huh.
• 6:17
  Speaker 4: Yeah, they've come a long way. It was safe for
• 6:20
  Speaker 4: certainly well lighted whenever up there, Bill Bunning when we
• 6:24
  Speaker 4: got here. Doesn't do much good with.
• 6:26
  Speaker 10: All those boxes piled up over there in front of
• 6:28
  Speaker 10: the window, though Maner says he went there when he
• 6:30
  Speaker 10: closed up there. Now nothing seems to botto room, does it.
• 6:33
  Speaker 10: They move in, don't chance turning out the light. They
• 6:36
  Speaker 10: just pile crates up between themselves in the street, and
• 6:38
  Speaker 10: then they take their time going the box.
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: That's it. There's the usual empty pop bottle, three of them,
• 6:44
  Speaker 4: cool of bits with you know, Hi Friday didn't know
• 6:47
  Speaker 4: you were here. Ye, Rubles, are you have we got something? Yeah,
• 6:51
  Speaker 4: fist he's out of the drain in the bathroom. What
• 6:53
  Speaker 4: you got? Looks like they're trying to get rid of some.
• 6:56
  Speaker 10: Of the checks torn up and it's fishing license written too.
• 6:59
  Speaker 4: Could I see the Charles W. Royal issued last month?
• 7:04
  Speaker 10: A good chance he might have carried the license in
• 7:06
  Speaker 10: his pocket and got it mixed up with the checks first.
• 7:08
  Speaker 10: Maybe he was going to take the checks but changed
• 7:10
  Speaker 10: his mind, tore him up the license with him. Let's
• 7:12
  Speaker 10: hope you're right to day, but it might just belong
• 7:15
  Speaker 10: to some employee here.
• 7:16
  Speaker 4: Well, we've been kind of figuring these jobs might have
• 7:18
  Speaker 4: an inside connection. Maybe this is it. Let's check it out. Yeah,
• 7:21
  Speaker 4: maybe this is the break we've been looking for. We
• 7:27
  Speaker 4: went back to the office and checked the name Charles W.
• 7:29
  Speaker 4: Royal through R and I. No record.
• 7:31
  Speaker 7: We contacted the management of the Wilson Markets. He had
• 7:34
  Speaker 7: been an employee at the store which was just held up.
• 7:36
  Speaker 7: He'd been transferred six months prior to their van Ey's branch.
• 7:40
  Speaker 7: In checking back, we found that the Vaney's Market was one.
• 7:43
  Speaker 4: Of the first stores to be burglarize.
• 7:45
  Speaker 10: It was placed under surveillance for several days, and during
• 7:48
  Speaker 10: this period another Wilson market was Burgeride.
• 7:51
  Speaker 7: The officers conducting a surveillance accounted for all of Royal's
• 7:54
  Speaker 7: time during the burglary. It was brought in for questioning
• 7:57
  Speaker 7: were cleared of any complicity in the burglaries. Monday, September
• 8:01
  Speaker 7: twenty eighth, eight am, we met with capt'n Wisdom.
• 8:04
  Speaker 10: The reason for royal fishing license being in with those
• 8:06
  Speaker 10: checks was because he left it behind at that store
• 8:08
  Speaker 10: when he was transferred.
• 8:09
  Speaker 4: That's right.
• 8:09
  Speaker 10: Manager of the store confirmed it that he kept it
• 8:11
  Speaker 10: in the safe for him so it wouldn't get lost.
• 8:13
  Speaker 4: That lead went nowhere, and none of them go anywhere.
• 8:16
  Speaker 4: We don't get any leads.
• 8:17
  Speaker 10: Men, No kickbacks on any of our teletypes. Apb's radiogram
• 8:21
  Speaker 10: between Armstrong, Rubles and Ben and I. The girls in
• 8:24
  Speaker 10: the stats office think we're on the payroll down there.
• 8:26
  Speaker 10: We're wearing out the cards having to make runs on
• 8:28
  Speaker 10: the game's m for us. How about that last stuff
• 8:31
  Speaker 10: Breton from the CII sent down.
• 8:33
  Speaker 4: Then we checked all three of them out. Nothing.
• 8:35
  Speaker 10: Boys in the crime lab got a lot of physical
• 8:37
  Speaker 10: evidence that they could make something out of it.
• 8:39
  Speaker 4: That's just it. You can't make something out of nothing.
• 8:42
  Speaker 4: You haven't got much up there. A few steel shavings
• 8:44
  Speaker 4: off those safe, a couple of.
• 8:45
  Speaker 10: Broken bits, handfull of cotton fuzz I think is off.
• 8:47
  Speaker 10: The guy's gloves can't work miracles.
• 8:50
  Speaker 4: Yeah, sure, I don't think we've overlooked any in Cap'n.
• 8:54
  Speaker 10: Every neighborhood in the vicinity of every burglary has been
• 8:56
  Speaker 10: checked and rechecked.
• 8:58
  Speaker 4: And all you turned up was that one woman now,
• 9:00
  Speaker 4: the one that saw the three men out in the
• 9:01
  Speaker 4: back of the Wilson Market overr on Vermont. She thought
• 9:04
  Speaker 4: they worked there, didn't know she'd witnessed the burgery. We
• 9:06
  Speaker 4: told her she couldn't identify an apple. I just checked
• 9:11
  Speaker 4: with the Sheriff's office.
• 9:12
  Speaker 10: These burglaries are driving them crazy too, Only it's voice
• 9:15
  Speaker 10: from the parole office.
• 9:16
  Speaker 4: Been trying to give us a hand.
• 9:17
  Speaker 10: Have checked out everything they sent us on dischargees and parole.
• 9:21
  Speaker 4: Nothing fit well.
• 9:22
  Speaker 10: Did the markets seem to be cooperating, holding up their
• 9:24
  Speaker 10: end as they were instructed?
• 9:25
  Speaker 4: Well, as far as we can tell, right to the letter.
• 9:27
  Speaker 10: You know, all the safes that were concealed in anyway
• 9:29
  Speaker 10: have been moved out in a more conspicuous spot.
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: All well eliminated.
• 9:33
  Speaker 7: Wilson Company has bought better made safe to replace the
• 9:36
  Speaker 7: ones that we're broken into that are replacing their old
• 9:38
  Speaker 7: models as fast as they can. Doesn't seem to stop them. Yeah,
• 9:42
  Speaker 7: all that's according a book. Doesn't figure it.
• 9:44
  Speaker 10: All those precautions, they'd be foolish enough to tip off
• 9:46
  Speaker 10: the thieves.
• 9:47
  Speaker 4: I mean here, pick a look at this. Yeah, Washing
• 9:53
  Speaker 4: and Gun turned this up at that venus full of
• 9:55
  Speaker 4: our job night before and last let me a graft
• 9:58
  Speaker 4: stakeout instructions.
• 9:59
  Speaker 10: That's right put out by the management of the markets
• 10:01
  Speaker 10: every time we informed them of a stake out at night,
• 10:03
  Speaker 10: they put these inner store memos on.
• 10:05
  Speaker 5: Yeah, that was for the purpose of informing all the.
• 10:08
  Speaker 10: Different store managers of the police Department's plan so they'd
• 10:10
  Speaker 10: be sure and comply with our instructions. Motive was okay,
• 10:14
  Speaker 10: but the effects have been causing us more trouble than
• 10:16
  Speaker 10: we know. We weren't these destroyed after the store managers
• 10:19
  Speaker 10: read them.
• 10:20
  Speaker 4: Apparently not.
• 10:21
  Speaker 10: We'd notify the management of the stores to be staked
• 10:23
  Speaker 10: out a week in advance so that they could quietly
• 10:25
  Speaker 10: let the stores know about it.
• 10:27
  Speaker 4: Whether we wanted the lights left on and turned off
• 10:29
  Speaker 4: to move the safe out of hiding all.
• 10:31
  Speaker 10: The various instructions, and the management if the market changes
• 10:34
  Speaker 10: took it on themselves to send out these memio sheets.
• 10:36
  Speaker 10: You know, not only that in checking the last couple
• 10:39
  Speaker 10: of jobs, either these sheets were in the manager's desks
• 10:41
  Speaker 10: or they were posted in the store someplace. All what
• 10:43
  Speaker 10: Beves had to do was go through a desk or
• 10:45
  Speaker 10: check a bullet and boardening and right where we'd be
• 10:47
  Speaker 10: without this advanced information. Maybe it'll slow them down. Maybe
• 10:51
  Speaker 10: we can write in on part of the luck we'd Yeah,
• 10:55
  Speaker 10: Now come on over here at the pin map Friday
• 11:00
  Speaker 10: and red pin for you and one for you rom Merrow,
• 11:04
  Speaker 10: you'll put them in. I got calllesses of my thumb
• 11:06
  Speaker 10: from trying to keep up with those things.
• 11:07
  Speaker 4: Who you know, Vellis Boulevard and rock Well from us
• 11:14
  Speaker 4: myth huh. You just look at him on there.
• 11:17
  Speaker 10: They're gonna run uside of pins if we don't blow
• 11:19
  Speaker 10: the whistle on them.
• 11:20
  Speaker 4: And I'm getting a little sick of it myself.
• 11:23
  Speaker 10: You take a good look at the map here, all
• 11:26
  Speaker 10: the red pins of these market jobs in and around
• 11:28
  Speaker 10: here and through here. Now, as you know, Wilson's got
• 11:35
  Speaker 10: stores throughout most of southern California. Yeah, they've hid in
• 11:38
  Speaker 10: and around the metropolitan area a Mona, Glendale, a couple
• 11:41
  Speaker 10: of times at the beach cities.
• 11:43
  Speaker 4: Look over here.
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 11:46
  Speaker 10: Now for some reason, the leaving Eagle Rock alone. There's
• 11:49
  Speaker 10: seven Wilson markets out there, and not one of them
• 11:51
  Speaker 10: have been touched.
• 11:52
  Speaker 4: Or maybe they'll hit there next huh.
• 11:53
  Speaker 10: And we double checked all Cruiser units out there, told
• 11:55
  Speaker 10: them to be doubly alert, also to report any suspicious
• 11:58
  Speaker 10: moves arounder any of the stores. I want to report
• 12:01
  Speaker 10: in any and all cars driving below normal speeds anywhere
• 12:04
  Speaker 10: near those markets, anything even remotely out of line. There's
• 12:07
  Speaker 10: seven stores in the around that area.
• 12:10
  Speaker 4: Excuse me, Burglary.
• 12:13
  Speaker 5: Wisdom, Hi, going, Who's that.
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: They did Colorado on Brian Yeah right away, Yep, that
• 12:27
  Speaker 4: was Lieutenant Vaughan Highland Park. I was wrong.
• 12:29
  Speaker 10: There's only six stores in Ingle Rock, now, what I mean,
• 12:32
  Speaker 10: they're not going over last night.
• 12:37
  Speaker 7: The preliminary investigation of the Wilson Brothers market and Eagle
• 12:40
  Speaker 7: Rock yielded no additional physical evidence, but it definitely showed
• 12:44
  Speaker 7: that we were dealing with the same gang of thieves
• 12:46
  Speaker 7: in this last burglary, they got away with eighteen hundred
• 12:48
  Speaker 7: and fifty two dollars.
• 12:50
  Speaker 4: One thirty four.
• 12:51
  Speaker 7: Pm, after five hours of continuous checking in the immediate
• 12:54
  Speaker 7: neighborhood of the latest market to be burglarized, Ben and
• 12:57
  Speaker 7: I located a Missus Olive Rebard.
• 13:00
  Speaker 10: We felt sure that we'd reached the turning point in
• 13:01
  Speaker 10: the case. Missus Rebard had seen two.
• 13:04
  Speaker 7: Of the gang members at work in the Wilson Market
• 13:06
  Speaker 7: at Colorado and Bryce and Eagle Rock. She agreed to
• 13:09
  Speaker 7: come downtown and go through photographs of criminal suspects.
• 13:16
  Speaker 4: No, not any of these. Let's try the next two paces.
• 13:24
  Speaker 4: There are a lot of them, aren't the Yes, ma'am.
• 13:26
  Speaker 4: There's still a lot more to go here.
• 13:29
  Speaker 11: I see.
• 13:32
  Speaker 4: No one of these sons.
• 13:37
  Speaker 8: This book.
• 13:39
  Speaker 4: How many does that make we've been through? I believe
• 13:41
  Speaker 4: this one makes fifteen.
• 13:43
  Speaker 11: Looking at all those faces makes you wonder are there
• 13:45
  Speaker 11: any honest people?
• 13:47
  Speaker 4: I always books represent an accumulation of many years. You understand, you.
• 13:50
  Speaker 11: Keep pictures of everybody ever been in prison, well within
• 13:53
  Speaker 11: our jurisdiction.
• 13:54
  Speaker 10: Yes, and a great many more besides. I see, man,
• 13:57
  Speaker 10: how about that fulsome book up there for forty five
• 14:00
  Speaker 10: and forty six.
• 14:01
  Speaker 4: All right, I'll put this one back fine forty six. Yeah,
• 14:08
  Speaker 4: that's it, And here we are you ready, missus leeb
• 14:14
  Speaker 4: all right, No, no, I don't believe it's any of them.
• 14:28
  Speaker 4: Turn the next dace, and how about these.
• 14:33
  Speaker 11: H this one?
• 14:36
  Speaker 4: No, No, that one fellow looked a little like one
• 14:42
  Speaker 4: of them. I thought he did it first. Which one
• 14:45
  Speaker 4: was that? This one? No? I was I was wrong.
• 14:49
  Speaker 4: You looked familiar with first glance. Well, now we told
• 14:51
  Speaker 4: you before, mis reebn.
• 14:52
  Speaker 10: If any of these men in their ears, eyes, nose, chin,
• 14:55
  Speaker 10: any part of them looks like any part of the
• 14:56
  Speaker 10: men that you saw, we'd like to know that.
• 14:58
  Speaker 4: We'll have our sergeant put off up in their crime
• 15:00
  Speaker 4: lab drop a composite for you. You mean you put
• 15:03
  Speaker 4: all the different features together, Yes, ma'am. You think it
• 15:06
  Speaker 4: might helpen anyway, I mean will certainly help.
• 15:08
  Speaker 12: Right.
• 15:08
  Speaker 11: I didn't realize that you were that thoroughly to be well,
• 15:14
  Speaker 11: I'm just not that sure about any of their features.
• 15:17
  Speaker 11: Just like I told you, I didn't get too good
• 15:18
  Speaker 11: a look at them, but I thought I might remember.
• 15:21
  Speaker 11: There's so many pictures here.
• 15:23
  Speaker 4: We would you like to rest a little on as
• 15:24
  Speaker 4: webard we've been going at this thing for about two hours. No,
• 15:27
  Speaker 4: that's all right. I want to help if I can,
• 15:29
  Speaker 4: thank God, open this door a little joe, all right.
• 15:32
  Speaker 4: I got a little draft in from the hall, gets
• 15:35
  Speaker 4: a little stuff in you. Sometimes. I wonder if you'd
• 15:38
  Speaker 4: like a cold drink or some kind of coke something out.
• 15:40
  Speaker 4: Thank you, that's very kind. I'm careful one, all right?
• 15:43
  Speaker 4: You like to go on?
• 15:44
  Speaker 11: Yes?
• 15:51
  Speaker 4: Mm hm.
• 15:54
  Speaker 11: You understand that when I saw these men in the store,
• 15:56
  Speaker 11: I had to look through the front window. We must
• 15:59
  Speaker 11: have been at least for feet away from me. I
• 16:01
  Speaker 11: had a shot to be heard, Yes, ma'am.
• 16:02
  Speaker 4: We understand.
• 16:04
  Speaker 11: They didn't come over to me at all. I just
• 16:07
  Speaker 11: can't believe that they were really those lightning burglars. Isn't
• 16:10
  Speaker 11: that what the paper called?
• 16:11
  Speaker 4: Yes, ma'am.
• 16:13
  Speaker 11: They were just as big as light They're standing behind
• 16:16
  Speaker 11: the meat counter. They even had on the butcher's ay
• 16:18
  Speaker 11: for Still hard to believe, because they didn't act like.
• 16:22
  Speaker 4: Burglers at all. Sometimes they don't.
• 16:25
  Speaker 11: The only thing that struck me funny was that anybody
• 16:27
  Speaker 11: be working there on a Sunday. I've seen men in
• 16:30
  Speaker 11: there before. It just didn't seem right that they'd be
• 16:33
  Speaker 11: working there.
• 16:34
  Speaker 4: I wanted to get in to.
• 16:35
  Speaker 11: Pick up a box of starch. They told me to
• 16:38
  Speaker 11: come back Monday morning when they were open.
• 16:41
  Speaker 10: If you could have seen over the counter from where
• 16:43
  Speaker 10: you were standing, you would have seen the floor safe
• 16:45
  Speaker 10: right there in the meat department.
• 16:46
  Speaker 4: They were trying to open it known it.
• 16:50
  Speaker 11: You're sure you people couldn't have made a mistake.
• 16:52
  Speaker 10: No, ma'am, I don't think so. We've checked there and
• 16:55
  Speaker 10: there was no authorized employees in that story. Yesterday morning.
• 17:00
  Speaker 4: Must have been then, yeah, we're pretty sure it was.
• 17:04
  Speaker 4: And let me help your damages right by. These pages
• 17:07
  Speaker 4: are stuck together.
• 17:15
  Speaker 11: I've seen so many photographs. They're only going to look
• 17:18
  Speaker 11: alike to me.
• 17:19
  Speaker 4: You'd like to rest a while, It's fine, Maybe you'd
• 17:21
  Speaker 4: like to go home, come back a little later. Do
• 17:25
  Speaker 4: you know something that I'm positive now I wouldn't know
• 17:31
  Speaker 4: those men if I saw.
• 17:45
  Speaker 6: You are listening to drag Net from beginning to end.
• 17:49
  Speaker 6: Drag Net is the authentic story of your police force
• 17:52
  Speaker 6: and action.
• 17:53
  Speaker 7: M Once more, what appeared to first be a good
• 18:04
  Speaker 7: lead dissolved into nothing. The stakeouts were continued. Everything possible
• 18:08
  Speaker 7: was being done to apprehend them. The burglaries of the
• 18:10
  Speaker 7: Wilson markets continued. On the night of October third, Officers D. B.
• 18:14
  Speaker 7: O'Connell and P. W. Murphy were working the stakeout on
• 18:17
  Speaker 7: one of the Wilson markets in Eagle Rock.
• 18:19
  Speaker 4: At two thirty three am.
• 18:21
  Speaker 10: They had observed a great Board Coop California licensed nine
• 18:24
  Speaker 10: Robert nine eight one three driving at normal speed until
• 18:28
  Speaker 10: reaching the storefront and then slowing down perceptibly, showing unusual
• 18:32
  Speaker 10: interest in the market. Lieutenant Armstrong and Sergeant Rubles check
• 18:35
  Speaker 10: the license number through DMV.
• 18:37
  Speaker 4: The car was registered to a Clyde R.
• 18:38
  Speaker 10: Bingham two three three South Carmona Place in Eagle Rock.
• 18:43
  Speaker 10: It was placed under surveillance while we made a thorough
• 18:45
  Speaker 10: check into his background. We located him at the Neighborhood
• 18:48
  Speaker 10: Bar on Colorado Boulevard.
• 18:49
  Speaker 4: We talked to him for an hour, so that's it.
• 18:54
  Speaker 10: I'm not sure, man, Are you sure you didn't drive
• 18:56
  Speaker 10: fast that Wilson market on Bellevue Avenue. I didn't say,
• 18:59
  Speaker 10: I've never done driven by it, but not on the night.
• 19:01
  Speaker 10: You said, well, have you driven by it another Night's
• 19:03
  Speaker 10: I wouldn't remember that. I live out here and I'd
• 19:05
  Speaker 10: drive down Beltue a lot, but I don't know if
• 19:07
  Speaker 10: I've ever been by that market.
• 19:09
  Speaker 4: I suppose I have.
• 19:10
  Speaker 10: We have your likings number, and the word of two
• 19:12
  Speaker 10: officers will tell you. I'm fraid they must be mistaken.
• 19:14
  Speaker 10: You have the word of Benny and Walt. You just
• 19:16
  Speaker 10: talk to them. I told you I was here on
• 19:18
  Speaker 10: the night of October third. I stayed here until almost daylight,
• 19:21
  Speaker 10: talking to Walt. He closed up at two, and sat
• 19:23
  Speaker 10: around and talked. What'd you say your car was parked
• 19:26
  Speaker 10: all this time right out in front? Ben Wal told
• 19:29
  Speaker 10: you that too. I'm telling you I never left this place.
• 19:32
  Speaker 4: The other night.
• 19:33
  Speaker 5: Is it possible you could have forgotten.
• 19:35
  Speaker 10: Not all three of us and you didn't loan your
• 19:37
  Speaker 10: cart anybody? No, sir, I never loaned my car stayed
• 19:39
  Speaker 10: right out there in front. What'd you say you did
• 19:41
  Speaker 10: after this place closed? As I said, I sat around
• 19:44
  Speaker 10: and talked to Wall he owns the place. What'd you
• 19:47
  Speaker 10: talk about? Well, I don't know all this, and that
• 19:49
  Speaker 10: I don't recall exactly. You go to work the following day, Yes,
• 19:53
  Speaker 10: I did it. It's funny you'd sit up on that
• 19:55
  Speaker 10: talking and go to work.
• 19:56
  Speaker 4: I don't have to be to work until I please.
• 19:58
  Speaker 4: You know my own books. You know, when you run
• 20:01
  Speaker 4: your business all by yourself. No, I have two secretaries.
• 20:04
  Speaker 4: They make up.
• 20:04
  Speaker 10: Checks, keep the books. What kind of business did you
• 20:07
  Speaker 10: say you were in business management?
• 20:10
  Speaker 11: You know.
• 20:10
  Speaker 10: The thing that bothers me is why you're asking me
• 20:12
  Speaker 10: all these questions. Routine investigation and sound very routine to me.
• 20:16
  Speaker 10: I don't understand well on an assignment. During the course
• 20:18
  Speaker 10: of that assignment, it became necessary to interrogate you. I
• 20:21
  Speaker 10: still don't understand anything else you want to know, No, sir,
• 20:26
  Speaker 10: I think that pretty well covers it. Something I'd like
• 20:28
  Speaker 10: to know.
• 20:29
  Speaker 4: Yeah, is there a law against slowing down in front
• 20:31
  Speaker 4: of a market?
• 20:36
  Speaker 7: Ben and I felt that Bingham was lying for some
• 20:38
  Speaker 7: reason that we were not aware of. All efforts were
• 20:40
  Speaker 7: made to determine that reason. We made a complete search
• 20:43
  Speaker 7: of his residents. His relatives, friends, and associates were interrogated.
• 20:47
  Speaker 7: The two men who had alibied for him were checked out.
• 20:49
  Speaker 7: No evidence was obtained to connect him in any way
• 20:52
  Speaker 7: with the Wilson Market burglaries. A surveillance was continued on
• 20:55
  Speaker 7: the three men. During the next two weeks, another market
• 20:58
  Speaker 7: was burglarized. None of the three men could have been
• 21:00
  Speaker 7: involved in any way. Another month went by, the burglaries
• 21:04
  Speaker 7: continued unchecked. The newspapers had dubbed them the Lightning bandits.
• 21:08
  Speaker 7: There was only one exception to the title. By this time,
• 21:10
  Speaker 7: they'd begun to repeat on markets to hit again where
• 21:13
  Speaker 7: they had burglarized the safe previously. December third, four am,
• 21:18
  Speaker 7: Ben and I were cruising the central area of the
• 21:19
  Speaker 7: section not covered by steakhom.
• 21:24
  Speaker 10: I figured there's only one way to beat this thing. Now,
• 21:26
  Speaker 10: what's that as for a transfer before they offer us one? Well,
• 21:30
  Speaker 10: it seems like every way we turned or stopped, no
• 21:32
  Speaker 10: leads nothing here. It is almost Christmas again. Those markets
• 21:36
  Speaker 10: these started last Easter.
• 21:37
  Speaker 12: Yeah, I know.
• 21:39
  Speaker 4: Now we got everything covered again tonight as best we can.
• 21:41
  Speaker 10: We could just keep all the markets covered at one time.
• 21:44
  Speaker 10: Well that's been done a couple of times, you know that.
• 21:46
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I know that. But keep them covered all the time.
• 21:48
  Speaker 4: Do we get to them? If we had demand far,
• 21:50
  Speaker 4: we could do it. Yeah, you want to swing in
• 21:53
  Speaker 4: close to the curb. Here's another market yet see anything? No,
• 22:00
  Speaker 4: nothing on this side.
• 22:01
  Speaker 10: We can't see the safe in there, can you No,
• 22:05
  Speaker 10: those vegetable counters are partially blocking it.
• 22:08
  Speaker 4: Lights on all.
• 22:13
  Speaker 10: Yeah, this side's clear to rear of the store, backs
• 22:17
  Speaker 10: up against that other building, doesn't Yeah, only a front
• 22:20
  Speaker 10: and side entrance.
• 22:22
  Speaker 4: They swing around again. Will you make a U Do
• 22:24
  Speaker 4: you see something?
• 22:24
  Speaker 10: No, I'm not sure. Just pull back up in front again.
• 22:28
  Speaker 10: Huh right, okay, this is fine. I want to kill
• 22:35
  Speaker 10: your engine.
• 22:39
  Speaker 4: You hear that. I'm not sure. I come on, you
• 22:47
  Speaker 4: hear it now? Now I stopped. Come on, they're throwing
• 22:56
  Speaker 4: vegetables at that front window.
• 22:57
  Speaker 7: I trying to draw our attention here. Now you cover
• 22:59
  Speaker 7: the side. I'll try to force to you. Right, there's
• 23:01
  Speaker 7: a news right right, I say it.
• 23:04
  Speaker 4: All right, you want to shake him down?
• 23:20
  Speaker 5: All right?
• 23:21
  Speaker 4: All right, stand still, government, Joe. I'll see if there's
• 23:25
  Speaker 4: any more besides these two right through tip jaw. We'd
• 23:28
  Speaker 4: have had a tip. We'd gotten you a long time ago.
• 23:31
  Speaker 4: That's it, just these two.
• 23:33
  Speaker 5: Somebody must tip jaw. You couldn't be this lucky.
• 23:36
  Speaker 4: Why not? You've had your share. The two men were
• 23:42
  Speaker 4: taken into custody.
• 23:43
  Speaker 7: Inn were identified as Wilfrid Lawson and Thomas Greenfield.
• 23:46
  Speaker 4: A check with ON and I showed no previous record
• 23:48
  Speaker 4: on either man.
• 23:50
  Speaker 7: After a short interrogation, Wilfrid Lawson admitted his part in
• 23:53
  Speaker 7: all of the burglaries of the Wilson Brothers markets. He
• 23:55
  Speaker 7: steadily refused to give us any information as to the
• 23:58
  Speaker 7: other possible members of the burglary game. Thomas Greenfield was interrogated.
• 24:03
  Speaker 7: He was the more timid of the two and claimed
• 24:05
  Speaker 7: that this was the first job he'd been on with Lawson,
• 24:07
  Speaker 7: that he did not know of any other members of
• 24:09
  Speaker 7: the gang, that he'd only served as lookout on this
• 24:12
  Speaker 7: particular burglary, that he was not deeply involved in. Further
• 24:16
  Speaker 7: investigation of the two suspects, Armstrong and Rubel found that
• 24:19
  Speaker 7: they had been seen in the company of still another man,
• 24:22
  Speaker 7: was impossible to get any kind of lead on the
• 24:23
  Speaker 7: remaining suspect.
• 24:25
  Speaker 10: We took the matter up with Captain Wisdom. It was
• 24:27
  Speaker 10: our combined belief that we should allow Thomas Greenfield to
• 24:30
  Speaker 10: be released on the grounds that we believed this story
• 24:32
  Speaker 10: about his slight part in the crimes. He was placed
• 24:35
  Speaker 10: under close twenty four hour surveillance. Thursday, December sixth, two
• 24:39
  Speaker 10: days after we'd released Thomas Greenfield, we were calling the
• 24:42
  Speaker 10: Captain Wisdom's office. Yes, we played it the right way,
• 24:47
  Speaker 10: letting Thomas go. How do you mean, well, first, of all,
• 24:50
  Speaker 10: we passed one up last October. You remember Bingham guide
• 24:53
  Speaker 10: driving slow past to market in Nigrok. Yeah, well here's
• 24:56
  Speaker 10: the one we watched and these two letters both postmarked. Hey,
• 25:00
  Speaker 10: we picked him up on that mail stop on Lawson?
• 25:03
  Speaker 10: Really from Thomas? Yeah, a couple of choice parts. Yeah,
• 25:07
  Speaker 10: listen to this. Client says to tell you he's not
• 25:10
  Speaker 10: sore anymore. Ever since that mix up him and the
• 25:13
  Speaker 10: Wall and Benny decided this was the best way to
• 25:16
  Speaker 10: play it. He says he'd want no part of what's yours.
• 25:20
  Speaker 10: And then there's a lot more here. Says he'll get
• 25:22
  Speaker 10: an attorney for Lawson, and he thinks he really put
• 25:26
  Speaker 10: one over on us.
• 25:27
  Speaker 4: Anyway, all three of m murnered it all the way.
• 25:28
  Speaker 10: Well, how does Bingham figure in it? We had him
• 25:31
  Speaker 10: under surveillance, didn't they you. We'll listen to this from
• 25:33
  Speaker 10: this other letter they I heard it is. I've been
• 25:39
  Speaker 10: talking with C. B Clide Bingham getting real clever now
• 25:43
  Speaker 10: using initials. I've been talking with CB several times only
• 25:47
  Speaker 10: on the phone. He's really not sore. He only laid
• 25:49
  Speaker 10: out since that time he figured he might be high.
• 25:53
  Speaker 4: That's enough, isn't It's all there, dad, Okay, you got
• 25:56
  Speaker 4: one to roll on? Yeah, go out and pick him up.
• 25:58
  Speaker 4: This time, we'll keep him.
• 26:07
  Speaker 5: The story you have just.
• 26:08
  Speaker 4: Heard was true, only the names were changed to protect
• 26:11
  Speaker 4: the innocent.
• 26:12
  Speaker 6: On March twenty, second trial was held in Superior Court,
• 26:15
  Speaker 6: Department eighty eighth, City and County of Los Angeles, State
• 26:17
  Speaker 6: of California.
• 26:18
  Speaker 5: In a moment the results of that trial, all.
• 26:29
  Speaker 6: Three suspects, Wilfrid George Lawson, Clyde Robert Bingham, and Thomas
• 26:33
  Speaker 6: Lewell and Greenfield were filed on for burglary in the
• 26:35
  Speaker 6: second degree.
• 26:36
  Speaker 4: Wilford G.
• 26:37
  Speaker 6: Lawson was filed on for twelve counts, Clyde R. Bingham
• 26:40
  Speaker 6: for six counts, Thomas L. Greenfield for three counts. Sentences
• 26:43
  Speaker 6: to run consecutively. They are now serving their time in
• 26:46
  Speaker 6: the state penitentiary. In view of the fact that the
• 26:48
  Speaker 6: authorities were unable to prove the defendants were armed at
• 26:51
  Speaker 6: the time of the burglaries and the stores were not inhabited,
• 26:54
  Speaker 6: they could only be filed on for burglary in the
• 26:56
  Speaker 6: second degree. Second degree burglary is punishable by a term
• 26:59
  Speaker 6: of not less than one nor more than fifteen years.
• 27:03
  Speaker 3: Ladies and gentlemen, we wish to gratefully acknowledge the Michael Award,
• 27:07
  Speaker 3: presented by the Academy of Radio and Television Arts and Sciences.
• 27:11
  Speaker 3: The Academy voted Dragnet the finest program of its kinds
• 27:15
  Speaker 3: with deep humility that Dragnet accepts this citation, the highest
• 27:18
  Speaker 3: award bestowed by the radio and television industries.
• 27:27
  Speaker 5: You have just heard Dragnet. A series of authentic cases
• 27:30
  Speaker 5: from official files.
• 27:31
  Speaker 6: Technical advice comes from the Office of Chief of Police
• 27:34
  Speaker 6: wh Parker, Los Angeles Police Department.
• 27:36
  Speaker 12: Day two and for Counterspy next over most NBC stations,
• 27:48
  Speaker 12: welcome back.
• 27:49
  Speaker 1: This one was an episode that when you get brought
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: down to it was about the challenge of conducting an
• 27:56
  Speaker 1: investigation and the fact that luck plays a role for
• 28:00
  Speaker 1: both the policeman and the criminals. I should say a
• 28:02
  Speaker 1: parent look, and this is a case where you have
• 28:06
  Speaker 1: to admit that the criminals had come up with.
• 28:10
  Speaker 2: A pretty good method.
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: As you've got this massive chain of hundreds of stores,
• 28:17
  Speaker 1: you can't possibly cover them all, and you really can't
• 28:21
  Speaker 1: predict which one of these two or three hundred stores
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: the criminals were going to strike at. And then of
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: course you have a witness who can't identify anybody, and
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: I sympathize with them, and I sympathize with her as
• 28:35
  Speaker 1: I listened to her going through the books, It's like, Yeah,
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: that's me all over. I'm horrible at remembering faces and
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: what people look like. I'm not quite face blind, which
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: is a real thing. But if I'm outside of a
• 28:49
  Speaker 1: store and there are a couple guys in meat department uniforms,
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: and then I think to tell the police about it later,
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: I'm not going to be able to tell them much
• 28:59
  Speaker 1: aside from maybe race facial hair. If I ever provided
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: information that helped the police, it would be some random
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: thing I noticed, or a couple numbers off a license plate.
• 29:12
  Speaker 2: But no, nothing like that.
• 29:14
  Speaker 1: So I understand her point, but again it leaves Friday
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: and Ramarro in a difficult spot. And this is a
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: case where you know, you can say different things. You
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: just got to go out there and work harder, or
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: you know, you just need a brilliant plan. But that's
• 29:31
  Speaker 1: not what happens here. Even though there are times in
• 29:35
  Speaker 1: Dragnet where somebody comes up with a clever idea that
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: changes things up and goes a little outside the box,
• 29:42
  Speaker 1: but most of the time the police saw the case
• 29:45
  Speaker 1: through the marriage of a plan that's worked before in
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: similar cases to diligence and carrying it out. It's t
• 29:54
  Speaker 1: that is and difficult, but sometimes it's the only thing
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: that gets the job done. Or Ben was so tired
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: of it he was hoping to get reassigned before the
• 30:03
  Speaker 1: next episode. But thankfully that's where the break came. Listener
• 30:08
  Speaker 1: comments and feedback and we go to Spotify. We're regarding
• 30:11
  Speaker 1: the big speech a chameleon of Central Police Headquarters rights
• 30:17
  Speaker 1: Joe and his mom must be a blast at parties. Well,
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: I would say that it is possible to be very
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: serious but to also be able to lighten up and
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: have a good time. I would say in theory, I
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: do think that when it comes to Joe Friday, there
• 30:36
  Speaker 1: is an image that Friday acquired as kind of a
• 30:41
  Speaker 1: stick in the mud.
• 30:43
  Speaker 2: Though I would say that in some ways it's a bit.
• 30:47
  Speaker 1: Similar to Batman, and that he becomes so dedicated to
• 30:53
  Speaker 1: the job and so married to the job that it
• 30:56
  Speaker 1: becomes his identity. That may be part of the reason
• 31:02
  Speaker 1: why there are many people who prefer Adam twelve to
• 31:06
  Speaker 1: the sixties dragging that Martin Milner as Pete malloy could
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: be very intense and serious, but he had a lighter side.
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: He liked to joke around even between calls. He actually
• 31:23
  Speaker 1: had some relationships as the show went on in a
• 31:28
  Speaker 1: really good sense of humor. No, I will say that
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: if I theoretically ended up at a party with the
• 31:35
  Speaker 1: old Friday and probably end up hanging out with him,
• 31:39
  Speaker 1: because I'm also bad at parties.
• 31:42
  Speaker 2: Okay, well, now it's.
• 31:43
  Speaker 1: Time to thank our Patreon supporter of the day, and
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: I want to go ahead and thank Mark, Patreon supporter
• 31:49
  Speaker 1: since March of twenty twenty, currently supporting the podcast at
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: the Shawmus level of four dollars or more per month.
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for your support, Mark, and that will
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: do it for today. If you're enjoying the podcast, please
• 32:02
  Speaker 1: follow us using your favorite podcast software and be sure
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: to rate and review the podcast wherever you download it from.
• 32:10
  Speaker 1: We'll be back next Thursday with another episode of Dragnet.
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: But join us back here tomorrow for yours truly. Johnny Dollar, Where.
• 32:20
  Speaker 2: And what's he doing here? Pullman?
• 32:22
  Speaker 4: What's there to investigate?
• 32:23
  Speaker 2: Now?
• 32:23
  Speaker 9: You may be trying to say I killed off the
• 32:25
  Speaker 9: herd myself to collect the insurance b said nothing of
• 32:28
  Speaker 9: the sort, And what's to investigate? I told you I
• 32:30
  Speaker 9: don't like this, and I'm telling you right to your face.
• 32:33
  Speaker 4: You shouldn't talk like that. It's the truth.
• 32:36
  Speaker 9: What do you think you're gonna do around here?
• 32:37
  Speaker 2: Dollar?
• 32:38
  Speaker 10: Bye?
• 32:38
  Speaker 4: Please? Well, that depends mister turmbull.
• 32:40
  Speaker 9: Does he have to say it's okay pullman before you
• 32:43
  Speaker 9: can pay my claim?
• 32:43
  Speaker 2: Yes?
• 32:44
  Speaker 4: He does.
• 32:45
  Speaker 9: Well, believe me if I'd known this was the kind
• 32:47
  Speaker 9: of aut that I was dealing with paying premiums to. Okay,
• 32:53
  Speaker 9: all right, poke around as much as you want, stay
• 32:56
  Speaker 9: around as long as you like. We'll bed you down,
• 32:58
  Speaker 9: we'll feed you, we'll show you what kind of people
• 33:00
  Speaker 9: we are. Just don't get in my way. I've got
• 33:03
  Speaker 9: a lot of work to do. And don't tell me
• 33:05
  Speaker 9: I'm a crook.
• 33:06
  Speaker 5: Now, let's be reasonable about this.
• 33:08
  Speaker 2: Me, I'm being reasonable.
• 33:09
  Speaker 1: You're the one hope you'll be with us then in
• 33:12
  Speaker 1: the meantime, send your comments to Box thirteen at Greatdetectives
• 33:17
  Speaker 1: dot net, follow us on Twitter at Radio Detectives, and
• 33:21
  Speaker 1: check us out on Instagram, Instagram, dot com, slash Great
• 33:26
  Speaker 1: Detectives from Boise, Idaho. This is your host, Adam Graham
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: signing off