 Sound off for Chesterfield. Chesterfield is best for you. First cigarette with premium quality in both regular and king size. Chesterfield brings you Dragonet. Ladies and gentlemen, the story you were about to hear is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent. Your Detective Sergeant, you're assigned a burglary detail. A string of safe burglaries breaks out in your city. In the past two months, 35 safes have been broken into. You know, there's more than one man in the operation. You've got no lead to the thieves identity. Your job? Get them. Years ahead of them all. Chesterfield is years ahead of them all. The quality contrast between Chesterfield and other leading brands is a revealing story. Recent chemical analysis is given index of good quality for the country's six leading cigarette brands. The index of good quality table, which is a ratio of high sugar to low nicotine, shows Chesterfield quality highest. Chesterfield quality highest. 15% higher than its nearest competitor. Chesterfield quality highest. 31% higher than the average of the five other leading brand. Yes, Chesterfield is first with premium quality in both regular and king size. Don't you want to try a cigarette with a record like this? Chesterfield. The documented drama of an actual crime. For the next 30 minutes in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department, you will travel step by step on the side of the law through an actual case transcribed from official police files. From beginning to end, from crime to punishment, Dragnet is the story of your police force in action. It was Tuesday, August 18th. It was warm in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch out of burglary detail. My partner's Frank Smith. The boss is Thad Brown, Chief of Detectives. My name's Friday. It was 1.34 p.m. and we got to the second floor of the central jail building. The crime lab. We couldn't sleep last night if they and I had another beef. Oh, what about this time? Cards, you know. Can I ask them? Yeah. Folks next door came over after dinner and we got to playing. They play real good. That wasn't long before we were really getting schlocked. What? You know, schlocked. Beaten. Oh, terrible. Last hand they go down right away, Joe. It seemed like everything I threw them, they could use. Picked up everything. And I couldn't do anything right. Just kept building up melds they did. Big thing for us was to get out as quick as we could. You know, get the hand over with? Yeah. If they wasn't doing any good, finally, I still don't know how they let it happen. I got enough points to go down, so I asked Faye if it's okay. You have to do that. You know, ask your partner's permission to get the hand over. You know that? Well, I've played it a couple of times. Yeah, with you. Oh, that's right. Well, you might not believe it, but you know what she said? No. You sat there and said she didn't think it was time. Is that right? Yeah. I know it's kind of picky, but there they were. The other kids just piling up points, schlocking us all over the place. Schlocking. Yeah. Handing around a couple more times. Each time I asked Faye if she wants to get out. Each time you know what she says? No. That's it. No. Well, what finally happened? Oh, the other folks ran out of cards. Wasn't any more play, so they got out. 3600 points. And I found out why Faye didn't want to quit. Why? Had a deuce. What? A deuce. A two, you know? Yeah. She said she didn't want to get caught with it. Yeah, well, we better get started, huh? Wait a minute. That's not the worst of it. Let me tell you. All right. All night we're playing, see? All night, I'm saving cards. You know, I'm like tens. Like to get tens. I save tens. Yeah. I guess everybody saves tens. Well, I save more than other guys. We get all through, and you know what? We find out there are only seven tens in the deck. One of them's missing. All night. There's seven tens. Well, that's dreadful. Well, I tell you. You're a schlock. You're a schlock. Couldn't sleep a wink. Righty? Yeah, right. Back here. Girls out to lunch. I'm on back. Hi. How's it going, Ray? Moving around's about all. Hot out, huh? Yeah. Paper says it's going to go over 90 today. Too hot for me. Yeah. Well, how are you coming on the job this morning? Just finishing up. Looks like the rest of them. Yeah. Got some pictures here. Take a look. Here's pictures of the marks that left on the door this morning. Mm-hmm. See those two long scratches on the wood? Yeah. Here? Yeah. Now, over here. Here's a picture from the Argosy Manufacturing Company's door. Mm-hmm. See? Yeah. Same two marks. Pretty safe bed. Pretty safe bed to figure that both doors are open to the same pry bar. Yeah. Same type of vent that's made this time, huh? Yeah. Just the one mark on the door. You know what they're doing? Insert the bar, hit it once, and the door opens. Mm-hmm. How about the safe? What do you got on that, Ray? Here. This is the picture we got of the room. Same as the others. Standard rip job. Nothing different there. How about marks? No. No help there. Here's the pictures. Looks like the same tool was used on the other jobs. Did you find anything else, Ray? No. At least nothing that helps. Layton Prince picked up a couple from the safe along with the manager of the place. Nothing else to give us anything. Well, I'd say that was the same bunch. Yeah, either that or they're lending their tools to the boys in the neighborhood. Yeah, well, that is unlikely. Cigarette, Ray? Yeah, thanks. Ray? There's the light. Ray? Thanks. We're leaning on you guys for this one, huh? Yeah, Skipper's taking a lot of heat. What's this make for him? 34 or 35? 35. Six months. Any nearer, Tom? No, not much. Got anything to tell how many men there are? It'll be hard to say for sure. The way they work figures about three or four, maybe. Yeah, that's the way it looks. Take that number to pull out the operation as smooth as they're doing it, though, Ray. You got anything at all to work on? Well, we checked around town. There aren't any rumbles. One of the tightest gangs that we've seen in a long time doesn't seem like anybody outside knows what's going on. We checked the places around. Nobody's spending a lot of money they can't account for. How much they take so far? Well, what they got this morning, let's see, it comes to a little under $36,000 in the bank. Yeah. What about you, Ray? You turn up anything we can use? Nothing that points any place. We know how they got in, how they hit the safe. That isn't going to help much. Same ammo as the others. You haven't got any idea who they are, huh? No, nothing. You haven't got any idea who they are? We could maybe use the Anthrosine on their tools. That's great. We've got to find the tools before we use that. We've got no idea where they plan them. It seems that one of your informants would be able to come up with something on it. Yeah, you'd think so. We've checked them all, Ray. No leads to the gang. Doesn't seem there's anybody in town that knows who they are. Anybody new operating around? No, we checked that out, too. We had the stats office make so many runs that they're wearing out the cards. M.O. isn't new. It's been used before, but all the possibles have been checked out. Stuff from Barrick and up at C.I.I., the other lead from the APBs, they've all been cleared. Now, we got just what we started with the gang working when they want to, where they want to, and there's nothing we can do about it. Well, there's just more I could do to help out. I've got to get back to work. I've got some precipitant tests Homicide wants us there for noon. Yeah, well, we'll see you later, Ray. Right. You want this stuff booked? Yeah. We'll take care of it. Okay. Excuse me a minute. Yeah. Crime lab, Pinker. Yeah. Yeah, they're both here. Which one? Yeah, hold on. Joe. Yeah. New office. Thanks. Friday. Oh, yeah, Chandler. Uh-huh. Wendy Call. Yeah, well, what's that number? Four? Four? Right. Yeah, I'll call them right away. Right. Bye. Chandler, huh? Yeah. Don Jackson called, said he wanted to get in touch with us. Jackson? Uh-huh. I don't know. Remember? It looked like the guy who was in on the service station jobs. Oh, yeah. I remember. That was a wax mustache, huh? Uh-huh. Hello. Don Jackson? Well, could I speak to him, please? Don? This is Joe Friday. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah, well, it's 1.47 now. It'll take us about 10 minutes. How about two? All right. Fine. Yeah, we know where it is. Right. We'll see you there. All right? All right. What's he want? He wants to see us about the rip jobs. Yeah. Don Jackson had been a suspect in a series of service station burglaries we'd investigated. He'd been picked up and interrogated, but investigation showed that he couldn't have been involved in the thefts. Since he'd been released, we'd heard nothing from him. And as far as we know, he'd gone back to his job in a downtown clothing store. From what he told me on the phone, he had some information about the current series of safe burglaries. 1.48 p.m. Frank and I left the crime lab and drove over to the store where Jackson worked. He managed to get relieved, and he took us to a small coffee shop near the store. We sat down and ordered some coffee, and Jackson told us what he knew about the burglaries. Yeah, thanks. Now, I could be wrong about this. I don't think so. But outside it could be. Donny, you got any one reason for figuring that this Scott fell his tight in with the jobs? Well, nothing I could put my finger on, you know, just that the guy's never done a full day's work in his life. Don't think he knows what a callus is. Yet he's always loaded, always got a role. It's real, too. Not like them you see sometimes with a big bill on the outside and ones in the middle. Now, this guy's loaded, you know? Yeah. Where'd you meet him? Well, I was sitting in a bar down the street one night having a belt before dinner. We got to talking, ended up beating together that night. You remember when this was done when you first met him? Well, let me see. Yeah, it was the day I got the trench coat from England. Now, let me see. That make it about August 4th. Yeah. Yeah, it was the night I got the coat. Come to think of it, that's how it got us to talking, the coat. Well, I don't understand. Well, you see, I got this year coat. I had to send it over from England. It's a real beauty. All kinds of linens and windstraps in the sleeves. It's great, you know? Uh-huh. Well, I haven't sent this coat to the store. It got down to 4th. I had it with me that night. Now, Scotty noticed it, and we got to talking about clothes. Went to dinner. He asked me how much the coat cost. I told him to run about 40, maybe 50 bucks. He asked me if I could get one for him, and I told him, sure. It'd take a couple of weeks. Uh-huh. Well, he asked me to send a letter to my friend and ask him to send the coat over by Express. I told him I would. And then he asked me if I wanted to pay me then. I told him, no, wait till I knew just how much the coat was going to run. You know, duty and postage and all that. Yeah, I know. Well, he said that'd be okay with him. I saw him a couple of times after that, and every time he'd ask about the coat, I told him that was in the works, you know. Well, finally got the coat. It was beautiful. Never saw the guy again. I'm out 46 bucks. I promise, Scotty, leave me with that coat. My own money, too, 46 bucks. I don't make enough to lose that kind of money, you know. Well, that's too bad, Jackson. But why do you figure this got anything to do with the burglaries? Well, now I just told you, for one thing, the money. Always had a lot, but it never had a job. No place to get the money. Not only that, but one night, well, I saw him, we were going out to dinner. And he said he couldn't quite make it then. That something had come up. That he had to take a rain check, you know. Uh-huh. Well, I asked him what had come up, what was so important. He said he had to see a guy over in East L.A., and make some sort of business deal. You say what this deal was about? No, I wouldn't say. The next day he shows up loaded, got a roll on him, choked a horse. Now I asked him where to get it. I kid him about being one of the guys who ripped the safe in the Augusti plant. What'd he say to that? Nothing, just got real serious, you know. Asked me why I asked him that. Well, I made me think he was in on the job. I kept telling him I didn't know anything about it. I was just kidding. He finally bought it and said it was okay. But he said I shouldn't go around saying things like that. All right, go ahead. Well, I got the coat and looked Scotty up to give it to him. Wouldn't pay for it. They lost the coat thing up or something. I don't know, sent the wrong size and I'm stuck with it. He wouldn't have anything to do with it. I figure since I ordered it for him it ain't my fault that it's big. He should pay for it, you know, 46 bucks. Now, any way you look at it, I laid out the dough. I figure he should make good on it. He wouldn't do it. And I got sore and I figured maybe you'd like to know how he acted about the Augusti job. Now I said, bum, 46 bucks, that coat cost. You know where the Scott lives? I don't know. I haven't got the slightest idea. But I got his phone number though. I'll give you that. Can he give us the description on him? Sure. He's sneaky little guy. No wonder the coat won't fit. Little bitty guy, you know. Yeah. Now you say his full name is Leonard Skanzer, right? Yeah, crummy bum. I hope you get him. Well, we'll talk to him, Don. If he knows something about it, I'll bet money on it. He knows. Say, I don't like to bring this up, but you guys could do me a big favor, you know. What's that? No, I don't suppose you could. What is it, Don? You know anybody could use a size 52 trench coat? We continued to talk to Don Jackson. We got the description of Leonard Scott and his phone number. 3.15 p.m. We drove back to the city hall and checked the name through R&I. We came up with several possibles. The mug shots were pulled on them, and they were shown to Jackson. He was able to identify one of them, as the man he told us about. The suspect had a record for burglary and had served two terms in the state penitentiary at San Quentin. He'd served his full term and was not on parole. We checked the last address on his convict registration card, and we found that he lived in a rooming house on West 11th Street. The phone number he'd given Jackson was the same as the one on the registration card. We drove over to talk to him. We found that he wasn't in his room, and from the landlady, we learned that he was expected back around 7 that evening. We checked his room and company with the landlady, and then we called the office and told them where we were in the event they had to contact us. We waited in the living room of the house for the suspect to return. 7.15 p.m. Yeah. He matches the description, doesn't he? Come on in. Just a minute. You'll enter, Scott? Yeah. Who are you? Police officers like talking. What's this all about? It'd be better if we went up to your room. Oh. All right. Come on up. Can't you give me some idea what this all about? We'll talk to you about it. Go ahead. Open the door. Go ahead. Yeah. Okay. What's a pitch? You've been through it before. You're an ex-con. You know the pitch. You tell us what you do for 11? I work. Doing what? What do you sell? Different things. What's all this prove? You guys coming in here making like big men? I'm going straight. I work for a living. Either tell me what this is all about or get out of here. You remember what you were doing on August 4th? It's a long time ago. Remember what you were doing. You have to think about it. It's a long time ago. All right. You take your time. We'd like to know. August 4th, huh? Yeah. Oh, sorry, fellas. Can't remember a thing. How about the 5th? Same there? 6th. Nothing? How about the 7th, August? I can give you a hand there. I had a dinner with a friend. Then we went to a show. I had a few drinks after, and then I came home. Who's the friend? Phil, I know. What's his name? Why I got to tell you that? We got to check your alibi. What do I need an alibi for? I haven't done anything. My time's clean. I got nothing to explain to you. Then maybe you can clear up a few things for us. I would like to help the cops out. What do you want to know? How come you remember what you were doing on August 7th? You got trouble with time before then, haven't you? What's so important with the dates? Maybe if you tell me what you're after, I can help you out. You quit being cagey. I'll come up with the answers. The Argosy Manufacturing Plant had their safe ripped open on that night. You look good for the job. Oh, you're out of your mind. Yeah, we've got a witness who tells us you showed up with a pocket full of money the next day. You've fallen twice before for burglary. You can't account for your time before or after the day, but you happen to have an alibi for the night of the heist. You've got no steady job, but you've got plenty of money. Now come off it, Scott. We got you nailed for the job and you know it. You've got a choice of giving us a hand on this thing. It'll be marked down in your favor, or you can be a big man You figure you can make me for the jobs? Looks like it won't be too tough. You're in the middle, Scott. Why don't you cop out? What do I get for turning things? I told you it'd be marked down, that way. How about it, Scott? All right, I guess I've got to go with you. I wasn't in on the jobs. I didn't really have anything to do with the casing. I helped a little bit, not much, just a little. Where'd you figure in it? Once I worked as a look-out for him. Who are they? I can give you the names. I'd like to see you get them, lousy bunch. Hope you get them good and make every one of them lousy mums the way they'd treated me. What do you mean by that? Big deal. Had the cops run around in circles. Big deal. Nothing. Work along with them. Everything would be fine. Big deal. How many of them are there? Four. Four real bums. They said they were going to take care of me. They told me I'd get my share of the money. Lousy liars. One job I was with them. After that, they told me I hadn't done enough to earn my way, that I wasn't any help to anybody. The next time you see them, you can tell them. Yeah? They were wrong. We got the names of the four men on the four suspects. He gave us a positive identification on them. We checked with Captain Wisdom and it was decided to wait until we could catch the suspects in the actual attempt to commit a burglary. We checked out the address of the four suspects and got as much information as we could on them without letting them know that they were under surveillance. Additional teams of men were assigned to the stakeout. Each of them was watched 24 hours a day and each of the teams of detectives were in constant contact with the burglary division. Two days passed. None of the suspects made any attempt to make contact with the burglars. We met with the district attorney and it was decided that in the interest of bringing the gang to justice, the first suspect, Leonard Scott, should be released from custody to act as an informant for us. He would be kept under constant surveillance. Frank and I were assigned to follow him. In the next three days, he went about his business as usual. Each evening he'd leave his rooming house and walk through the bars in the downtown area. He told us that contact and information regarding the burglaries was made by the leader of the gang, one of the suspects named Howard Ramsey. On the 24th of August, we saw Ramsey approach Leonard Scott. They talked briefly in the rear of a bar on 6th Street and then Ramsey left. We waited for about 15 minutes and then we saw Scott leave the bar. We followed him down the street to an all night coffee stand. We sat out next to him at the counter and at the first opportunity he told us what Ramsey had said. You guys haven't got long to wait. What do you say? The deal's set. It's going to be a machine shop out in West LA. Rumble is the safe has over 25 grand in it. Biggest job they've tackled. You say how it's going to work tonight. You are listening to dragnet, the authentic story of your police force in action. Don't you want to try a cigarette with a record like this? Chesterfield, first to give you premium quality in both regular and king-size. Chesterfield, first choice of young America from a survey of 274 leading colleges and universities. Chesterfield, first to give you this report. A doctor has been making thorough examinations of a group of Chesterfield smokers every two months for a full year. And it reports no adverse effects to the nose, throat and sinuses from smoking Chesterfield. Try Chesterfield. Regular or king-size. Chesterfield is America's best cigarette buy. 9.32 p.m. we got the rest of the story from Leonard Scott. The plan as he outlined it for us was that we were at the plant that was to be burglarized. We got in touch with the men who were following the suspects and told them what had happened. 10.07 p.m. we met with Captain Wisdom and put the operating plan into effect. It had been arranged that all of the men following the suspects would be in three-way radio cars so that constant communication could be kept between the units of the operation. Additional officers were there. In this way we could direct operations and we'd have a complete picture of what was happening in the immediate vicinity. A blockade system was set up to be put into operation once the suspects had entered the trap so that escape would be impossible. 11.45 p.m. the plan was completed and the men involved were in their assigned positions. We followed Leonard Scott to his Wilshire Boulevard toward West L.A. As we drove we could hear the other units reporting the position of the men that they were following. All of the suspects left their homes at approximately the same time and it looked as if they would get to the plant within a couple of minutes of the scheduled time. Scott had told us that they would not meet at the plant but they'd rendezvous to drive in a couple of blocks from the plant. The other units got into their positions as arranged. Frank and I took up our position and we listened to the reports coming in over the radio. Unit 1KY80 to Rubles. Go ahead. They crossed the street from the factory, Joe. I can see the suspects now. How many of them are there? There's a couple more at the corner of his lookouts. Hey, Donovan's down in the block. Maybe he can see the others. Unit 1KY80 to Donovan. Come in, please. He's changing a tire. Got the jack under the car but he's not trying to get the wheel off. The others are at the factory door now. Do you see anything where you are, Joe? Not much. Shadows across the street. I can't see the doorway. What are they doing now? They're inside now. They forced the lock on the door and got inside. Door's closed. Now I can't see them anymore, Joe. All units, this is Friday in Unit 1KY80. All units move to blockade positions. Unit 2R4, 5, 6 and 7 and Unit 2R20 move to blockade positions. All right, let's go. Right. They've got the place covered in back, okay? Yeah, all covered. All right. Let's ought to do it, huh? Right. All right, let's go. There, I see. Let's take it easy. There's a light back there. It looks like the office. Wait a minute. All of them are in the office now. You want to move in from that side? Right. Get on it. We haven't got all night. That safe feels like a sardine can. There's no reason to take this long. We were doing the best we can. We got the 10-0 fireworks giving us trouble. Yeah, let me take a look. All right, hold it right where you are. Cops, let's get out of here. Watch them, Joe. I'll get them. Right. Come on, Ramsey. You got no place to go. Don't shoot anymore. Right, give up. Right, give up. Come on, cops. Come on and get it. He ain't talking for me. I've had it. I don't want any more shoots. I'll give up. I'll throw your guns out here. His mind. All right. Stand right there and don't move. I gave up, didn't I? I didn't want any more of it. Come on, Ramsey. Your partner was smart. Why don't you play it that way, too? You come and get me, cops. Come out of shells. Don't shoot. Throw that gun. Keep your hands back of your head. Come on, move. Nice to walk. Stand still. Don't move. All right. They're clean, Joe. All right. There were three of them. Where's the other one? They made a break for the front door. They got them out there. Lousy luck all the way around. How'd you know? Who told you? That doesn't make any difference. Well, somebody had to tell you. You'd never have found out if somebody had told you. Yeah, that's right. Come on, let's go now. Well, who told you? Who turned things? Somebody had to tell you, didn't they? Don't you worry about it, mister? What do you mean? You're going to have a tough day this year. Good day, sir. Thank you. Don't be too reckless. I'm sure you're going to find your way in. I'm sure you're going to find your way in. But, in January 14th, trial was held in Department 89, Superior Court of the State of California, in and for the county of Los Angeles. In a moment, the results of that trial. Now, here is our star. Jack Webb. Thank you, George Fennerman. I'd like to talk to you people who don't smoke Chester Fields. I'm convinced that if you try just one carton, you'll find that they're best for you. They're milder Try them. John Ramsey, Jack Irwin, MacArthur, and the other two suspects were tried and convicted of 15 counts of burglary in the first degree. They received sentences as prescribed by law. Burglary in the first degree is punishable by imprisonment in the state penitentiary for a period of not less than five years. Because of his cooperation, Leonard James Scott was given a lighter sentence, and at the conclusion of his prison term was placed on probation for a period of two years. Ladies and gentlemen, we wish to thank the editors of TV Guide for the cover picture and story on Dragnet. You can get TV Guide as your favorite newsstand. Just Heard Dragnet, a series of authentic cases from official files. Technical advice comes from the Office of Chief of Police, W.H. Parker, Los Angeles Police Department. Technical Advisors, Captain Jack Donahoe, Sergeant Marty Wynne, Sergeant Vance Brasher. Heard tonight were Ben Alexander, Olin Suley, Vic Perrin, Jack Krushan. Script by John Robinson. Music by Walter Schumann. Hell, give me speaking. For a million laughs, tune in Chesterfield's Martin and Louis show Tuesday on the same NBC station and sound off for Chesterfields. Either regular or king size, you'll find premium quality Chesterfields much milder. Chesterfield is best for you. Chesterfield has brought you Dragnet transcribed from Los Angeles. Our new Fatima has the tip for your lips. Fatima tips of perfect cork. King size for natural filtering. 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