FUR THIEVES

Hokitika Guardian, 27 June 1932, Page 3

FUR THIEVES

DUMMIES CARRIED AWAY. SMASH AND GRAB RAID. LONDON, June 23. Thieves who carried out a smqsh. and grab raid in the early hours of the morning at Messrs Gooch’s establishment in Brompton Road, London, u'nero in one of the lar fe e show cases fronting the etr,et furs to the value of about £40,000 were displayed, .vere in such a hurry that they took also the (lummy figures on which the furs were displayed.

Driving up in a large saloon ear at 2.3 d a.m., when the thoroughfare was deserted, two men alighted, and darting across the pavement, broke the plate-glass windows in two places with blows from a hammer.

The night watchman, attracted by the moiise of falling glass, rushed to the street entrance, blowing his whistle, but the men had got away with several expensive sable and mink coats, and the ear was being driven away, with the dummy figures protruding through the half-open icjor.

When the chase wa,-; given a lew moments later, the dummies were found lying in the roadway: It was evident they had been thrown out after being stripped of the fur coats while the ear was being driven through the crescent. The police could find n sign of the ear and nothing to indicate tiie direction it had taken. The raid was undoubtedly the work of expert fur theivo,-: who had been keeping watch on the district lor s°nie time. The show case raided was only prepared tin* day belurc, in readiness for a fur sale which lujd been announced to begin shortly.' In tb ' very limited time at their disposal the .niidi’ys allowed discrimination. and the coats made up of rare skins which could have been readly identified were passed over. <?