 Ladies and gentlemen, the story you are about to hear is true. The names have to protect the innocent. You're a detention surgeon. You're assigned a burglary detail. You get a call that a clothing store in Hollywood is some losses. The value of the stolen property is over $12,000. There's no lead to any of the beef. No pattern to his MO. Your job? Get him. It was Wednesday, June 3rd. It was hot in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch out a burglary detail. My partner is Frank Smith. The boss is Captain Bernard. My name is Fred. We were on our way out from the office at 9.56 a.m. when we got to 1592 Vine Street. Dodd's men's store. Excuse me? Yeah. I wonder if you can tell us where you find Leonard Dodd's? Yeah, uh, that's him. Tell it back here in the blue suit. Thank you. Thank you. Well, I don't know how it happened, honey. No, I just came in this morning. I noticed this stuff. What's going on? The whole shipment is wearing coats. It hasn't even been unpacked yet. Yeah, about two dozen of them. We're white with a button-down collar. Yeah, I called the cops and the insurance company. Yeah, a little less 12,000. Well, a couple of customers just came in, honey. I'll call you back. Yeah. Well, don't worry about it. Yes, sir? Can I help you, gentlemen? Mr. Dodd? That's right. Police officer, this is Frank Smith. My name is Freddy. How are you, sir? You reported to Bergery this morning? Yeah, are you guys from Hollywood? No, sir. We're out of central. I didn't think I'd seen you around here before. You want to tell us what happened? Yeah. Come on back to the storeroom. When did you first discover the staff? Well, this morning, when I came in, I went back here to unpack merchandise, and I found most of it gone. Here, I'll get to you. Now, this is our storeroom. I'm going to ship them from the east. The cases are going to get canceled and packed with the invoices. Was all of the stolen merchandise taken from this room? I'm not sure about that. I do know that a shipment of suede jackets and weskets was in here. It's gone now. A couple of cases are sure it's too. The only way I'd have of knowing if it took anything from out in the store itself would be to make a complete inventory. What do you estimate the loss at? $12,000. When was the last time you saw the merchandise in here? Yesterday afternoon. About what time? Well, I'd have to guess at that. I'd say about 3 or 3.30. How many doors are there in the store here? Just the front one, one in the back, opens into an alley. What if we can see the rear door? Sure. Back this way. One of the first I called them. I found out it was gone and I checked the door. It was still locked. You have an arm system in the store? Yes. It didn't go off last night. I see. This is big for yourself. There's nothing locked. No, it'll fall into the gym. Well, that's what I thought, too. I looked pretty close. Any sign of where they came? How about windows? Hmm? Possibly got into a window? No, I'm sure. Two got in here. You can see them. They're 10 feet and barred. They couldn't have gotten in there. All right. We'll have our crime. We'll have to take a look. Who has keys to the plate? Well, I've got one. Yes, sir, but who else? Well, they're just me and Al. Al? Yeah, Al Baker. He's sort of the assistant manager. Whenever I'm not around, he takes charge of things. Whoever you can when he comes in. Listen, I don't want you to give him any trouble. I cut him with anything. Anything at all. I don't want you asking why. All right, sir. He would. Well, I could live here. It's not one of the things I'm going to do. Now you're calling me a loser. But you can be sure of one thing. What's that? Isn't anybody who works at the store did that? You seem pretty sure about that. Well, I know my people. All of them have been with me for a couple of years. I trust them all. I noticed that you're doing some remodeling here. How about the workman? A possible one of them took the merchandise? To Friday, do you know how much $12,000 in closing? Yes, sir. I have an idea. And the both of you couldn't carry it in one trip. Not in a couple of trips. Well, we took the whole entire getting of it. We have to open up to let them in and they leave before we close. They tried to get the things out of the store. One of us had seen it. Couldn't possibly have been one of them. Right. Yeah. Sure. You need your phone? Yes. It's on the counter in front of the store. I just don't understand it. Sure. This doesn't seem to be any way they could have gotten all of the clothes out. No way at all. We must have found one. 1038, the crew from the crime lab arrived and went over the place. The whole cell checked and all entrances and exits of the store were checked for fingerprints. Both the front door and the rear exit were examined, but there was no mark of a jimmy. The windows on the second floor were gone over, but the locks on them were secure and there was no apparent way they could have been used to remove the stolen merchandise. We talked to the other clerks in the store, and then we got approximately the same story that we'd obtained from the store manager. They verified that the merchandise had been on the premises at 3.30 p.m. the day before. None of them could say for certain that it was there after that, however. While Frank was checking with the members of the crew from the crime lab, I called the names of the employees into the record bureau for a check. Yeah. That's Baker. B-A-K-E-R. W-M-A. 46.5. 156. That's all. No visible marks this time. John, I got something for you. Okay, if you'll check the names, I'll give you a call later. Right. What do you got? Come on upstairs. I got talking to the figure from the found the merchandise had to be came out in the daytime. Will he go along with that? Yeah. They were open. Somebody used a key. He thinks like we do that somebody took the cases out of the plan of them and picked the stuff up last night. What do you got up here? The window that opens out on the roof of the next building. Check the lock from here. Yeah. Come on. Climb up. No bars on this one, huh? Uh-huh. Over here. Get behind here. Now what? Take a look. There. Shirts. And this one? Swag cuffs. This is all it was taken. No. The manager says it's about half. No time for the rest of it. No. Just take them out last night. Takes a few back nights for the rest. Well, it'll be here. So will we. We had a manager clothing store to keep watch on the case of solar ties while we made arrangements to play stakeout. 12.14 p.m. The crime lab finished their investigation back in angles. He told us that he checked the fingerprints found on the doors and windows but that all of them had been eliminated as they belonged to the members of the store staff or to the workmen. He told us that they found an impression of a tire print in the dirt of the alley next to the building where the stolen clothing had been found. He went on to say that they'd checked and found that the truck belonging to the plaster contractor had tires of the same type that had left the impression. It slipped into the building next to the clothing store. There was no new information on the possible identity of the thief. 3.52 p.m. We checked back with the record bureau on the list of names of store employees. Yeah. When was that? Uh-huh. How long? To get out clean. Mm-hmm. Nothing on the rest of them, huh? Yeah. Okay. Thanks. Bye. Anything? We checked the names, came up with one possible. Yeah. The assistant manager, Al Baker. Uh-huh. He's done time for burglary. The record bureau had come up with the information that Alfred Roger Baker had been arrested in 1943 for burglary. He'd been tried and convicted on three counts. He'd spent a term in the state penitentiary of San Quentin and he'd been released. Since that time, he apparently had led the life of an exemplary citizen. 4.07 p.m. Frank and I took him to the office to clothing store. Sit down, Baker. Sure. Hold on. You don't think I had anything to do with this burglary, do you? How many times have you been arrested? What do you have to say? We just want an answer. You seen the record? We've seen it. You know without me telling you? We'd like to hear it from you. I think I did the time. I'm clean since then. I thought when you did the title, you did anything. Yes, that's right. You know what are you guys hopping on me for? I just work here. I mean, just because I did a hitch for burglary that I had anything to do with this. You know you did. Well, you sure are acting like I did, bringing me in here, talking about how I was arrested. You sure are acting like you think I had something to do with this one. Good for it. How do you figure that? You've got the only other to your door. Look, I don't like to bring this up. Maybe you bright cops haven't thought about it, but who says Dodd couldn't have done it? Well, he's in trouble. Big trouble. This would be an easy way out of it. All right. You tell us. Well, all this stuff is insured. Be pretty sweet for him to lift the merchandise, collect down the insurance, and then sell the stuff, too. Come real good. I thought you... Try and figure it anyway. All I know is that you guys are trying to wrap something around me that doesn't fit, and I want no part of it. Come right down. It must be a couple of... You must have trouble financially, otherwise you're doing all this remodeling. He hasn't got much choice. He's got a brightness place up. He's going to lose what business he's got. You check into him. You look it up. You'll see what I'm talking about. It makes a lot more sense than you hauling me in here. Can you account for your time last night? From when? From the time you left here. Yeah, I can give you every minute. All right. Go ahead. I left here at 6.30. That's the time I always leave. Who was here when you left? You mean who locked up? That's right. Leonard, he always locks up. Always. Where'd you go after you left? Went up to the corner and had a beer. That's like always, too. Anybody in the bar know you? Yeah, the bartender and the waitress. They'll vouch for you? Sure, they will. All right, go ahead. After I left there, I drove home. What time did you leave the bar? About 7.10. I had one beer, smoked two cigarettes, put a nickel up the home. I left at 7.10. She was sure you were going to want to know the time I got proven that. You'll have to take my word for it. What time did you get home? By 7.50. Where do you live? On the valley. Traffic's heavy going out of the path that time. And I took me 10 minutes longer than it usually does. You approve when you got home? Yeah, I can. How? Talk to my wife. We got a time clock on the wall just as you come in the door. I punch in and out. The time will be there. What about last night? I was home the day I sat her on, watched television, went to bed. You didn't leave your house, huh? No, nothing the time. I got home last night until I left this morning. Pretty bad, isn't it? How do you mean that? I can prove every minute of it. Look, you get off my back, cop. You start looking around. You'll come up with a lot. I've got a lot more chance and a lot more reason to height that stuff than I do. That won't be hard because I haven't got any. You sit tight and I'll show you who sold that stuff. Huh? Wait a minute. Where are you going? Just over to the desk. I want to show you something. What? You'll see. Hold it just a minute. What's the white one? You can never learn to do. You open up, Troy. This one? Yeah. All right. I'll open that one. All right. What do you want? Uh, a folder right there. This one? Yeah, this one. Put it up on the desk. All right. Go on, open. Yeah. Now take a good look at the reason the stuff was stolen. What is it, Joe? Bills? Isn't there anything that's paid for? Take a look at them yourself. Here. Okay. A past due. Please remit. Your credit is important. Over due. Past due. Go through the rest of them. They're all like that. There's no place in the country anymore to extend any credit to Dodds. Not one. You're looking for some kind of reason to steal the stuff. Well, there's your answer. You talk to them about it. He's got the reason. Come in. Joe. I'll take it. I'll take it. You've got to lean on somebody. You lean on Leonard Dodd. He's the one. Don't come around here bothering me. Joe. Yeah. He might be telling the truth. Huh? Stuff on the roof. Yeah. It's gone. You are listening to Dragnet. The authentic story of your police force in action. With the removal of the remaining packages on the roof, our main opportunity in the seat was done. We questioned the people in the store. From them, we learned that the man-hides had brought the cases of clothing into the store himself. We talked to him and he offered as an explanation the fact that the insurance company wouldn't like him leaving a supply of expensive suede coats up on the roof. He went on to say that catching the thief was our best apprehendment. We tried to question him regarding the accusations made by the salesman, Al Baker. He said they were ridiculous and that we hope they end up listening to the next convict. He went on to say that he resented the questions we put up in the thinking of the office and made arrangements for a stakeout to be set up on the roof of the building next door. And then Frank and I returned to the office to check further on Leonard Dodds. We checked with his bank and we found that he had several notes on the clothing store. The head of the loan department told us that Dodds' payments had been irregular and that at the time he was overdue on one of the notes. We contacted the insurance company and found that Dodds had made a claim on the stolen merchandise that morning and had requested payment as soon as possible. We turned the list of the stolen articles over to Pawn Shop Detail and asked them to see that the information would get into the hands of the second hand dealers in the city. Ten fifteen p.m. Frank and I filled out the log and prepared to leave the office. You about ready? Yeah, I'll be right over there. I got it. Very great Friday. Yes, ma'am. Hmm? Well, I'm not sure. No, the officer that handled the case isn't here right now. What if I could take a message? Yes, ma'am. He'll call you when he gets in. All right. Uh-huh. Yes, all right. If you'll wait just a minute, I'll transfer to the main jail. No, the main jail. They'll probably be able to tell you. Yes, that's right. Just a minute. Hold on, please. Would you give this call to 2949, please? That's right, the bail plate. Thank you. All right. The woman wants to know how much it's going to cost to get her out of jail. I got it. Very great Friday. Yeah, mm-hmm. Yeah, that's right. We did. Yeah. The one was that. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, okay. We'll wait here. Bye. Bye. It looks like we got it made, maybe. What do you mean? Radio car out in the West Lake District just picked up a couple of kids. Uh-huh. Both of them were loaded down with clothes. Yeah. Label on them as Dodds clothing. The radio car officer had told me on the phone that he and his partner, while making a routine patrol of the area, spotted two boys walking down the street, securing large quantities of clothing. When they were stopped, the two suspects were unable to account for the clothes, and they were not able to tell the arresting officers where they'd gotten them. In checking the pair out, the officer called Bergeri detail, and we'd gotten our first concrete lead to the thief. 10.47 p.m. The two suspects arrived at the office. Their names were checked through R and I, and they were both found to have misdemeanor records listing petty theft and attempted Bergeri. One of them, Walker Kramer, had been convicted on Bergeri charges and had been sentenced to Preston School for boys. He was at the time on parole. While the other boy waited in the squad room, Frank and I questioned Kramer in the interrogation room. Howler. 18. 40 lit. You know that already when you're asking me again before I told the other cop gave him all the information. Where do you live? By 74 Brandon Street. You want to tell us where you got the clothing you had when you were picked up? You're smart cops, you figure it out. You on parole now? No, I got out clean. Are you still that way? That depends on how you read this one. Where'd you get those things? I found them. You expect us to buy them? I don't care if you buy it or not, it's the truth. You're pretty heavy, aren't you? I've been around. That time up at Preston didn't do you much good, did it? Be surprised what I've learned up there. Not what you were sent there for. That depends on where you're sitting. You were picked up carrying a load of stolen clothes. You want to tell us where you got them? You tell me. Come on, kid, where'd you get the clothes? You're going to play it that way, aren't you? There ain't any of it. Where were you yesterday? Starting when? From when you got up. I got to tell you all that? We want to hear it. Pretty dull. All right, go ahead. I got up about noon. You got a job? Yeah. Where? Around. What do you do? Nothing. I'm a philosopher. I study people. I just sit around all day and study people. How do you live? What you did yesterday? Told you. I got up about noon. Had some breakfast. Then went over to Harry's. That's the boy you were picked up with? Yeah. Went over to his house. Sat around and watched the television. How long were you at his house? Maybe six. Sat around and talked philosophy. Talked and watched the old movies. What'd you do then? Left him out to study people. Where'd you go? Went down, played a couple of games at pool. Had some lead. And after that? Went out to a movie. You got any way of proving that? Sure. Talked to Harry. See your alibi? Yeah, you talked to him. You may not know this, but he's in the theft as deep as you are. I got some information for you, cop. Neither one of us is in on it at all. All right, get your coat. What are you taking? City jail. You gonna book me? You called it. How about him? He going to? Yep. Charge. Suspicion 459 PC. Burgary? That's right. Come on. You mean that stuff is really stolen? That's right. You're telling me right? Yep. That ain't true. You tell us about it. No, I mean, Harry and me didn't steal the stuff. At least not the first time. What do you mean by that? Well, we stole it. Yeah, you got us cold for that, but not the first time. Where'd you get it? From a garage. That's the truth. We stole the stuff from a garage. Where is the place? I'll show you. There's a lot more stuff there, a lot more. Clothing? Yep. Whose garage is it? I don't know. Harry and me were walking around out there and we saw this truck pull up. Guy got out and then loaded some packing cases. When was all this? Last night. Where the garage looked though it wasn't the first time. The place was loaded. A lot of shirts, coats, suits, all kinds of things. Harry and me figured that we might as well help ourselves. We didn't steal the stuff originally, not the first time. What's the address where the garage is? I don't know. Up on Shortale Avenue near the light. All right, we take you up there when you point it out for us. Sure, I'll show you. I want to see him get his. Get a real good. What do you mean? Imagine having a garage full of stolen things. Well, that's all right. Sure. The important thing is that you know that we didn't steal it the first time. You got to believe that. We didn't steal it the first time. Is there really a difference? Well, 15 a.m. We talked to the suspect that had been picked up with Kramer. He gave us substantially the same story that we'd gotten from the first boy. They both agreed to take us out to the garage where they found the stolen merchandise. Before we left the office, we put in a call to the clothing store, but there's been no report from the stake out on the roof. The two suspects directed us to drive out. We took the freeway out to Glendale Boulevard and turned right. We drove out to Loma Vista and then we turned right again. The boys directed us up the hill and then onto a side street. We went about a half a block farther before they pointed out the house to us. We drove down the street and parked the car. Frank and I and the two suspects walked back to the house and into the rear of the yard. A two car garage in the rear of the building was unlocked. We went in. Scattered around the place, we found several large packing cases of clothing. The labels on them were from some of the most exclusive men's stores in the city. There was no question about it. This was the plant for the stolen merchandise. Frank stood by the back door of the house and I went up on the front porch and rang the bell. Yeah. You're Martin Hepman, aren't you? Yeah, do I know you? My name's Pipe's Police Department. Oh yeah, I met you over at Dodge. What is this, one question? Yeah, a few. Kind of late to come around it. Well, maybe a little. Just going to turn in. Can you wait a little morning? I could come down to the police department. You don't have to talk tonight. Oh. Okay, come on in. Thank you. Anybody else in the house? Just my wife and the kids. Where are they? Upstairs. They're all asleep. I told you I was just going to turn in. Uh-huh. That garage out back, that belonged to you? What? The garage out in the back of the lot. Is it yours? Yeah, that's mine. Why? What do you use it for? What do you use a garage for? I keep the truck there. But where's the truck tonight? I left it at the service station down Glendale Point. Heaven agrees, and you have changed. Why? Anybody else use the garage besides you? No. Everything in it belonged to you? You mind if I call my lawyer? Well, you can do that from downtown. You arresting me? Yes, sir. You found the stuff, huh? We found it. That's a cigarette? Yeah. There's a man. I guess I should have gotten it out of the garage sooner. Figured on the first thing in the morning. You talked to me this morning and thought I should have known. I shouldn't have known right then. I didn't think you'd figure it this way. All right. Come on, get your coat. Yeah. Just let me finish the cigarette. Let me see your headed figure. You're going real good. Want to hear about it? All right. Well, I'm a plastering contractor, you know that. Yeah, you told us that this morning. Well, I bid on the jobs, all the contractors submit bids on how much we'll do the work for, you know what I mean? Mm-hmm. I always got in with the low bitches to drive the other contractors crazy. Never could figure out how I could come out on it. You see it, though, don't you? Well, you tell me. Well, you see, if a job would cost me, say, $3,500 to do, I'd put in a bid for $2,500. I always get the job, and then I'd steal the other thousand merchandise, see? Mm-hmm. It could hurt. What about the store owner? I weren't sure. Only about in the middle was the insurance company, so you see, nobody really got hurt. You about finished that cigarette now? Yeah, just about. Pretty lucky, you know. Is it right? Yeah, sure. This was going to be the last time. I figured that after this, I'd be able to go it straight. Got my equipment all paid for, money in the bank. Figured I could go it straight. This was going to be the last time. Well, you were right, weren't you? Hey, you might tell me something. What's that? How'd you tag me? How'd you find out? We caught a couple of kids breaking into the garage. They'd stolen some of the clothes they were picked up and they pointed the place out to us. Kids? That's right. How about that? That's really terrible, isn't it? What is? Oh, this younger generation, I had legitimate reasons. I was just trying to come out. Wasn't anybody going to get hurt my way? But those kids, I hope you're going to put them away for a long time with them thieves. Come on, get your coat. Let's go. That's just awful. No sense of honesty at all. I sure hate to think of what the world's coming to. You want to tell me something, Hepman? Sure. What do you want to know? You said you just stole the difference between what you agreed to do the job for and what it really ought to be. Am I got it right? Yeah, just the difference. Well, you hit the dodge star pretty high, didn't you? $12,000 worth? Well, you see, that was a kind of a deal. Well... I didn't get anything on the last job, not a thing, so I had to make up for it, you see what I mean? Yeah. I had to come out some way. Nobody would expect me to take a complete loss with it. I wouldn't know about that. I just wanted what I had coming. Yeah, well, you're going to get it this time. ... Martin April Hepman was tried and convicted of burglary in the second degree for counts and received sentence as prescribed by law. Burglary in the second degree is punishable by imprisonment in the state penitentiary for a period of not less than one or more than 15 years or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one year. Walter James Kramer and Samuel Arthur Nicholson were tried and convicted of burglary in the first degree. Burglary in the first degree is punishable by imprisonment in the state penitentiary for a period of not less than five years. This is a presentation of the United States Armed Forces Radio Service.