THIEVES IN SYDNEY

Hokitika Guardian, 23 March 1921, Page 3

THIEVES IN SYDNEY

DARING GANG AT WORK. VICTIMS WARNED BY TELF PHONE.

For the last two or three months a daring, though apparently inexperienced gang of safe-breakers has been operating in the city and suburbs, says the Sydney “Daily Telegraph,” of March sth. Atom ing after morning reports have come to police headquarters of still another safe blou-n. The. frequency with which business people have suffered losses in this way has become annoying. The detectives are faced M-ith a most difficult proposition'. They are of the opinion that the gang does not number amongst its members any uell-knuu-n criminals of this particular class. Many things have given colour to this belief, which only makes the task of apprehending the offenders the more difficult.

Their methods are crude. On!v ui a few isolated eases has the gang < l' s j played any forethought or investigation into the circumstances surrounding the proposition which they propose to deal with. Again and again they are draM'ing blanks. Tn this particular, they differ from a clever gang of some time ago, uho became possessed of information which enabled them to know when large sums of money would j he locked up in various safes. The | present operators also show a palpable ignorance of explosives and their use. Inspectors Fowler and Leary aie using their best endeavours to cope with the outbreak. Both of them are of the opinion that the cracksmen will have to be caught “on the job.” Still, clever detectives, as these tu-o are, have a wav of working silently without saving anything as to their plan of. campaign. At least the business public can rest assured that the best brains of the C.I.D. are at work on the problem. AN EXPLOSION FAILS. The two latest jobs were reported j yesterday. | The cracksmen tried but failed ° blow the safe in Marcus Clark’s furni- | ture warehouse, in George Stieet. The j safe withstood the explosion, lit the other case they took twav a small sate, weighing about U cwt, and containing about £7, from Walters, Middleton, and Eve’s premises in Burwood. Up till last night the safe had not been found. Probably it will be eventually discovered, prized open, on some vacant allotment, of which there are many m the locality. A most peculiar thing happened m re rail'd to the attempt at Marcus Clark’s safe. The manager, shortly after business had been commenced for the morning, and the visit of the cracksmen had been discovered, was called to the telephone. A mysterious stranger advised tfie manager to he very careful of the safe. He confided the information that there was still enough explosive in the lock to blow quite a lot of tilings hevond thennatural elevation.

“Who is speaking?” queried the asr tonished manager.

“Now, M-liat a fool I’d he to tell you that,” M-as the reply over the wire. The manager found the warning to be justified. At least the cracksmen do not want to cause death to anyone needlessly.