Show Story of the FBI FB Bulky Thieves Led To Nat Wide Nation Wide ion Wide Ring Editors Editor's note This Is the ninth and la last t installment of The InIde Inside In In- side Ille Stor Story of the F B I. I Iu B By Andrew Tull Tully V WASHINGTON The The clerks inthe Inthe in inthe the Bozeman Mont clothing store were as worldly as any of their Ilk Uk they they could take a wide assortment assortment assortment assort assort- ment of weirdly proportioned male figures without so much as dropping dropping dropping drop drop- ping a 0 tape measure But the guy waddling out of the shop that morning was burdened with the bulkiest torso ever to loom on their professional horizon Bulky was the w word rd The character character charac charac- ter looked as though his flesh was arranged on him In layers He looked as though he was wearing quilted underwear He looked looked- hey wait a minute He looked as though he was wearing two or three suits A couple of the boys rushed out of the store In pursuit of their well-dressed well patron But it was too late His baggage had not af affected affected af- af his speed Incredibly the man had walked out of the store with four 50 mens men's suits on his person Checking further it was learned that a cardboard cardboard cardboard card card- board box containing several suits and bearing a Detroit address had broken open at the railroad sta sta- tion Break Shoplifting Rh Ring g gIt It was the break for or which the F FBI B I and police departments in scores of American cities had been i waiting Within a few months a tireless and flung far-flung campaign of arrests arrests in In which all but two of the 48 F FBI B I field divisions in the country took part part had had rounded up the biggest ring ring- of shoplifters ever everto everto to operate in the tle United States The traveling thieves known as boosters had traipsed all over o the United States in cars furnished furnished furnished fur fur- by headquarters in Detroit They worked in threes threes and and their methods were as simple as they were unique Three men would enter a clothing clothing clothing cloth cloth- i ing store preferably a small one in which no more than two or three I I Ithe clerks would be employed Two of the men would be wearing clothing obviously much too large f for r them While hile the third man engaged the clerk by making several small purchases pur pur- chases chases Ha you got a purple purple purple pur pur- collar button his button his his companions companions companions compan compan- ions would be busy stuffing two ho or three suits at a time under their clothing Scientific Technique Sometimes they would go o out to deliver deli the suits suits suits' to a waiting availing car carand carand carand and return for another load while their confederate conveniently was recalling recalling- that he didn't have enough shoe laces The thieves had developed a scientific t technique for or conce concealing ling I Ithe the stolen suits They would wrap them around coat hangers and then force them down their flopping flopping flopping flop flop- ping trouser le legs s leaving enough under the belt line to prevent the suits from falling through Loose vests concealed the portions of the suits which remained above the trousers Prices for the stolen suits were fairly well standardized 10 standardized 10 for fora a suit with ith one pair of oC trousers 11 for a two-trouser two suit and 10 for a topcoat The suits mits had a aready aready aready ready sale in various second-hand second and basement shops throughout the country Clothing store operators had been dr driven dren en to distraction by the time the F FBI B I was called onto the scene In several se instances store managers had been fired ired under suspicion when they were unable to explain the disappearance disappear disappear- ance of clothing from their es es- es F FBI B I Steps In InThe InThe InThe The box that broke open in the railroad station in Bozeman led police to a basement store in Detroit Detroit Detroit De De- De- De troit owned by one Manuel Garcia Garcia Garcia Gar Gar- cia where they found 1010 mens men's suits and overcoats none of which bore identifying labels It was also discovered that clothing had been received from cities all over the country Having determined that the value of the stolen goods transport transported transported trans trans- port ported d in interstate commerce exceeded exceeded exceeded ex ex- ex- ex the F FBI B I was given jurisdiction under the national st stolen ell property act Quickly the I nationwide net of FBI field off offices of- of f Cices pooled Its information and almost immediately arrested in Helena Mont elon t. t one J John ohn Mendoza who owned the automobile in which the thieves had traveled to that state Garcia was taken taleen into custody in Detroit Detroit- Three others were nabbed In New Mexico Two women were apprehended in the act of lifting an expensive fur coat in a n store in Norwalk Conn Mendoza and two others eventually eventually even even- were sentenced to year 10 prison terms terras Garcia got seven and anda a half years and other members of the ring were sent to prison for terms ranging from two to five years I And some clothing ex-clothing store managers managers managers man man- agers got their jobs back Distributed by United Feature Syndicate |