 You can help do something about muscular dystrophy which today has over 100,000 victims and most of them are children from 3 to 13. This devastating disease attacks without warning. There is no pain, no known cause, no known treatment, and no known cure. Even those of you who are not parents must realize the heartbreak of standing by in the knowledge that you can't save a child from certain death. The only hope that exists for the doomed victims is in constant painstaking research. Your contributions will make this research possible. Send as much as you possibly can to your local muscular dystrophy chapter or to the Muscular Dystrophy Association, New York 8, New York. Music This is your FBI, the official broadcast from the files of the Federal Bureau's investigation presented and transcribed as a public service by the American Broadcasting Company. Music Tonight the subject of our FBI file, Robbery, its title, the Sunshine Syndicate. Music The criminal who commits a minor crime and who remains near the scene of his crime ordinarily is hunted only by a local police department. But the criminal who goes after bigger game, who regards the entire nation as his bailiwick, who commits a crime and then moves on, sometimes thousands of miles, presents a more difficult problem. The problem of finding one person in a nation of 140 million people. Every clue becomes an important one. For every clue might be the one which helps your FBI to bring the criminal to justice. But whatever the difficult is, however many times your FBI may have been frustrated, the search goes on. Because to stop would be to admit defeat and to leave the way open for the criminal to choose another victim, a victim who might be you. Tonight's file opens in a house located on the shores of Miami's Biscayne Bay. In the living room of this residence the woman is sipping a long cool drink as the man at it. Hello. What are you drinking? Ramen Coke. Does it taste good? Mm-hmm. It looks good on you too. What? Look at the front of your dress. What? That's a dribble glass. I've been waiting two days to nab somebody with that. Why, you stupid... I got you. Get out of here. I nailed you good. Get out, I said. I really don't see why you don't have any sense in me. Greetings, my dear children. I said, greetings. Shut up. Why, Ruth? Look what that idiot just did to me. What happened? Another one of these practical jokes. Now, look, Jack, I have asked you... It was just a dribble glass. Dribble glass. Itching powder. Squirting flowers. That's all I get all day long around here. I'm set up with it. See? Now, Ruth, control yourself. I'm set up with the whole routine. Darling, clean. For two weeks now I've sat around this joint all day long while you've been out of the racetracks, the beach clubs, teedances. Strictly business, my dear. Some business. Now, Ruth... I'd like to remind you that on the first of the month we blow this house from the two cars we rented. Ruth, will you listen to me? I've made a score. Huh? You mean you met a dame? Yes. She's exactly the type we've been looking for. Are you telling the truth? My word of honor. Where'd you meet her? At the beach club. Her name is Mercer. Ann Mercer. Any dough? Loaded. What's the story on it? From the middle west. Forty-ish. A widow. Hey, that's right up your alley. Precisely. What about jewelry? She's practically illuminated. When do you see her again? We have a lunch and date at the beach tomorrow. Let me have a pen and some paper. I want to write her a note. Here's a pen. The paper's in the desk. I'll get it. There. Thank you. Now I shall tell her how long and difficult the hours will be until we meet again. I want her to... Hey, what's wrong with this pen? Rubber point. Now, do you see what I mean? Meanwhile, at the local FBI field office, special agent Jim Taylor approaches the desk of agent Walter Colton. Excuse me, are you Walter Colton? That's right. Your agent in charge told me to see you. I'm Jim Taylor. Oh, hello there, Jim. Sit down. Thank you. Now, what brings you here to Miami? Well, I've been working on a case in Baltimore. I'll try to give you a brief outline on it. Okay, far away. A gang of jewel thieves has been operating up there. Two men and a woman. The victim was a wealthy Baltimore widow. One of the men became friendly with her. It took her out several times. He posed as a broker. I see. And what about the other two? Well, they were allegedly his secretary and chauffeur. One night he took the victim out in his car, drove to a lonely spot, took her jewels, and then left her there. And what are your leads? Well, they'd been living in a hotel in Baltimore. I learned that from the victim. The time I got there were naturally they'd checked out. Yeah. I presume you have a description of them. Yes, we've sent out circulars. You should have one around here by now. When did the robbery occur? Two weeks ago. Any of the jewelry turned up? Not yet. No. I gather you think the gang is down here. Yeah, that's right. Why? Well, yesterday I finally established the fact that they'd bought plane tickets to Miami. Am I to work in this case with you? Uh-huh. Good. Any suggestions on our first move? Well, naturally we should get the circulars to all the hotels, rooming houses, real estate agents. That's right. And there's one of the leads that I'd like to follow up to. What then? Well, when I searched their Baltimore hotel room, I found a catalog that they'd left behind them from an outfit in Philadelphia called the Palisades Novelty Company. They sell a complete line of practical jokes. Oh. Now, as you will know, practical jokers are incurable. Now, if one of the gang left that catalog behind, he might just turn up at a novelty store down here to, well, replenish his supply. Yeah. So let's go to work on that angle. Oh, Mrs. Mercer, this is a glorious day. Glorious. Yes, indeed it is. You know, I've just been thinking. What about? What a fortunate fellow I am. How do you mean? Well, to have this wonderful beach, the warm sunshine, and above all, your charming companionship. Thank you. You know, Mrs. Mercer? Please call me Anne. May I? Of course. Thank you, my dear. And I hope in turn that you'll call me Roy. Very well. Roy. Ah, that's much better. You know, Anne, I have a confession to make. What, Roy? If I'd followed my original plans, right now I'd be winging northward in a plane. Really? Yes, I had every intention of leaving this morning. Well, what changed your plans? Would you really like to know? Yes. Meeting you. Roy. Are you pleased? I am. Excuse me, Mr. Patterson. What? Oh, hello, Miss Trimont. I hate to disturb you, sir. That's quite all right. Mrs. Mercer, this is my secretary, Miss Trimont. Miss Trimont? How do you do? What do you want, Miss Trimont? Well, your New York office has been trying to reach you. Oh, bother them. They said it's important. Oh, tell them I don't wish to be disturbed. Yes, sir. What about Jack? Where is he? He's at the club. He's waiting for you. Tell him I won't need the car this afternoon. Yes, sir. And, uh, how's the market? Steady. Good. Uh, that'll be all, Miss Trimont. Yes, sir. Goodness, I'm keeping you from your business, Roy. My dear Anne, the only business I have is to be with you. Walt? Oh, hello there, Jim. Just in time. Oh, what do you mean? Well, here's a teletap just came in for you. Oh. Here you are. Thanks, Walt. Come on in my office. Okay. Any luck today? Yeah, I picked up a lead. I don't know what good it'll do us all. Huh? What'd you find? Well, I went the rounds of the novelty stores, took these sketches that were drawn up from the descriptions we had of the three jewel things. Mm-hmm. Man, in one of the stores recognized this guy here. Oh, that was the chauffeur? That's right. He'd been in the store the day before, and he bought, of all things, some rubber handcuffs and a toy mower. I see. He asked for a lot of other items, but they didn't have them in stock. And did he leave his name or where he lived? No, but I'm having the store put under surveillance in case he returns. Well, Jim at least establishes the fact that they're here in Miami. Yeah, that's right. What's in the teletap? Oh, I asked Washington to check with the Palisades novelty company. You remember I found that catalog in that Baltimore hotel room? Yeah. Well, I thought if the catalog had been sent to someone in the hotel, we'd get a specimen of handwriting, but they had no record of any such request. You know, I don't understand why we haven't heard anything from the hotel and real estate people on that circuit. You know, I don't either. Walt, they're here undoubtedly to pull another job. We got to try and catch up with them before they land the next victim. Ruth! Ruth! I'm in here. Oh. Oh, hello, my dear. Hello. Well, what's this? What? This broken vase. I threw it at Jack. Unfortunately, I missed. Now, Ruth, look. Look, I've taken all I can from that guy. This is the end. What does he do now? When I woke up this morning, my hands were cramped together with rubber handcuffs. When I went to brush my teeth, there was soap in the toothpaste. I drank coffee out of a dribble cup. All right, all right. Now, Ruth, we have more important things to discuss. Nothing can be more important. Now, listen to me. We're moving in on Mrs. Mercer tonight. What, so soon? My dear, I've had four days with her. And with my technique, that is more than enough. Well, what's the setup? We're going to work differently this time. I like it down here. And I think we'll stay a while. You mean after you take the jewels? Yes. How can you do that? Well, I'm calling her now. Just listen and you'll find out. Roy, I don't get it. Mrs. Mercer's servants are off tonight. There'll be no one in the house. Yeah. Quiet. Hello, my dear. Oh, Roy, how are you? Oh, splendid. Thank you. I just called to confirm our engagement for this evening. Oh? I shall pick you up about eight. That'll be fine. Darling, do you by any chance have to be home early? No, of course not. Why? Well, I've just missed my chauffeur for the evening. I thought after dinner we might take a ride in the moonlight. Just us two. Oh, I'd love that. Fine, fine. Well, by the way, Ann. Yes? Would you do me a great favor? Of course. What is it? Well, this may sound silly to you, but would you mind not wearing your jewels? Why? Well, there's been so much talk of jewel thieves holding up cars lately. I'd just feel more comfortable if you'd leave them at home. No. Thank you, my dear. Oh, have you a safe place to keep them? Yes. I have a strong box in my dresser drawer. Excellent. Excuse me. Until eight, my love. Until eight. Until... Excuse me. Goodbye. Goodbye. Until... Oh, dear. Ruth, I have such a tickling in my nose. Hey, wait a minute. Let me look at that phone. Until... I thought so. Look, sneezing powder. Jack did that? Who else? That fool. He could have ruined everything. Then why don't you get rid of him? Jack, my dear, we need him. We need him to get those jewels tonight. But he's the best inside man in the business. Do you need him after he gets the jewels? Oh, I see what you mean. Special Agent Colton. Hello, Art. This is Jim Taylor. Oh, hello, Jim. I was hoping you'd call. Wow, what's up? A man named Farber got in touch with me a few minutes ago. He's a real estate agent here in Miami. Yeah? He's been out fishing for a couple of days, and just went our circular this afternoon. Oh, I see. Well, he claims he rented a house about three weeks ago to a man named Patterson, who answers to our jewel thieves' description. Wow, did you get the address? Yes, where are you now, Jim? On that mark now. I'll hop right over there and pick you up. Who's that? Me, Roy. Oh. Well, how did everything go? Okay. Have you got the jewels? Uh-huh. Well, where are they? Right there, in that tin box. Oh, that's wonderful. Oh, the box is locked. You'll have to pry it open. That will be a pleasure. Now, give me the details. Oh, very uneventful. Jack went in. I waited outside in the car. Ten minutes later, he's out of the box, and we drove back here. Now, just wait until I get something to open this box. Where's the Mercer Dane? I just dropped her off at her house. Well, now, this should do it. Did she enjoy the moonlight ride? No jealousy, darling. It was all in the line of duty. Oh, by the way, where's Jack? He went out to put the car away. Oh. Roy, are you going to do like you said? About what? Taking care of that jerk? Yes. When? Just as soon as he comes in. I can hardly wait. Hey, what's that? The car backing out of the driveway. Huh? Look. Look out the window. This is Jack. He's driving away. What in the world? Open that box. Quick. What? Open it. Ruth, surely you don't think... Yeah, that's got it. It's empty. Not quite empty. What is that? A rubber mouse. We will return in just a moment to tonight's dramatic case from the official files of the FBI. Here is a message of special interest to owners of United States defense bonds. And the life of your series E bonds in extra 10 years. If you're one of those patriotic Americans who bought defense bonds 10 years ago and held them to maturity, you can continue to hold those bonds and at a good rate of interest too. The defense bond which cost you $18.75 10 years ago will pay you $25 today. But if you hold it for another 10 years, your bond will pay you $33.33. That's an increase of 77% on your original investment. Be wise. Keep your maturing defense bonds just as you've been doing. Let them collect interest and continue to buy defense bonds regularly on the payroll savings plan where you work or at your bank or post office. For America's defense, for your own future security, invest more in United States defense bonds. And now back to the FBI file, the Sunshine Syndicate. There are times in the lives of all of us when we accept perfect strangers and give them places of confidence. Tonight's case from the files of your FBI proves how foolhardy such a court of action can be. For the criminal makes his living on the misplaced trust of his fellow men. Your FBI does not ask you as decent citizens to reject every offer of friendship made by a stranger. But your FBI does advise you to use an ounce of caution to check a stranger's story before you believe it. Some strangers you meet are perfectly honest, are indeed worthy of your every trust. But their honesty lies not in their faces, but in their hearts. Tonight's file continues. FBI special agents Taylor and Colton, acting on the tip given them by the local real estate man, drove to the jewel thieves' home. After parking their car and quietly circling the outside of the house, they returned to the front door. There's something funny here, Walt. The lights are all on, but I don't see anyone inside. I know. Garage being empty too. Do you suppose they were tipped off? No, not by the real estate man, Jim. He's a reliable citizen. They looked there. And what? I didn't notice that before. The front door is wide open. There it is. I guess we just walked right in? Well, I'd say they've gone all right. You must have just missed them, Jim. Look, Jim, here's a cigarette still burning in this ashtray. Yeah. What do you got there? Something at Proser come to the right place. What? Toy mouths. I found it in this tin box. A practical joker. That's right. Someone's coming up the front stairs. Yeah. It's a woman. Roy? Roy? Oh, I beg your pardon. Is Mr. Patterson here? No, I'm afraid he isn't here. Are you a friend of his? Not exactly. I've got to see him. Something awful has happened. Oh, and what's that? I was out with Mr. Patterson this evening. And when I returned, I found that all my jewels were stolen. Uh-huh. He advised me not to wear them, and I didn't. But when I got... Just a minute, please, ma'am. He was with you when they were stolen from your home? Yes, that's right. I mean, here's a new technique, isn't it? Yeah. What are you talking about? Oh, I beg your pardon, ma'am. We're special agents of the FBI. We came here tonight to pick Mr. Patterson up. He's wanted for jewel theft in Baltimore. What? Have you notified the police yet? No, and I found they were gone. I came right here. Well, then, suppose you give us all the details, ma'am, and we'll get on the phone and send out a general alarm. Well, what do we do now? Please, please, Ruth, I'm trying to think. You just can't keep driving around the streets of Miami? I know, I know. You check the airport, the railroad station? I don't think he'll abandon the car. But it's rented. So is this one. But that doesn't stop us from going wherever we please. You're a dirty double-crosser. How did he have brains enough to pull a trick like that? He undoubtedly overheard us talking about him taking care of him. Wait a minute. What? I think I can guess where he's heading. Really? Yes, our Jack is a creature of habit, and I'm sure that one cylinder of mine of his will make him take the jewels to the one place he's sure he can get rid of them. Where's that? Miller, the fence in New York. That could be. We're heading for Palm Beach. For? To get a New York train. They run from here, you know. Ruth, our sudden disappearance may arouse suspicion. But if we take that much time, you may clear the jewels with Miller before we get there. Oh, no, it's too big a score. Miller won't handle everything in one chunk. So, darling, we play it safe and drive to Palm Beach. Oh, this is probably discouraging, Walt. Yeah. It's two whole days now, not a trace of them. I know, Jim. You know, it doesn't seem probable that they would have gone in the hiding here. They must have skipped out. In spite of our alerting airline, bus and railroad terminal? Yeah. Well, I'm sorry I couldn't have been more help to you, Jim. Well, it wasn't your fault, Walt. Breaks of the game. That really stayed mad at giving us that tip, and it's sooner we'd have had the three of mine bars. Yeah. By the way, did you see these? What's that? These photo stamps I had made at the Beach Club guest registry. All three of them signed in there, you know. No. No, I didn't. Let's have a look at them. We sent copies to Washington. They can check the handwriting. Something might come of that. Yeah. I'd like a copy of these, too, Walt. Yeah, sure. Might be very useful. When are you returning to your home office, Jim? Well, I'm supposed to report back tomorrow. But now that I have these handwriting specimens, I'm going to ask for permission to make a stopover in Philadelphia. Hello? Well? I've just been to see Miller. He's a fan. Yeah. He knew he'd beat us to it. Oh, look. Did you find out where he's living? Yes. Hello, Jack. Greetings from Miami. What are you doing here? Oh, we found out where you were living, and we decided to surprise you and drop in. Oh, I never mind the small talk. Let's get down to business. Very well, my dear. Look, I... I bet you thought I ran out on you down to Miami, huh? But you gave that impression. Well, it was just a joke, see? You know me. I'm all the time joking. Oh, you don't think I really tried to lamb off with them jewels? All we care about right now is the money you collected from Miller plus the rest of the loot. Oh, sure. I got it right here, all of it. Now, wait. Huh? I want you to observe that I have a gun here, just in case you try anything irregular. Oh, now look. Quick, darling. Get it up. Okay. Here's the money and the rest of the jewels. Thank you. Now, I have something for you. Well, I... I see no reason for our staying around here, Ruth. Did you get everything? It appears that way. Yes. Okay, let's go. You see, darling, it just proves the old adage. All's well that ends well. Oh, after you, my dear. I advise you to stay right where you are. What? Who are you? I'm a special agent of the FBI. What? I have a gun here, so please don't try it. What are you doing here? I came to arrest that man there on the floor, finding you wasn't at a surprise. How did you know where to find him? Well, as you know, your friend there like practical jokes. I learned that from a catalog that he left behind in your Baltimore hotel room. So? So, in Miami, I got specimens of his handwriting. I took it to the novelty company in Philadelphia and found out that he had written for another catalog from this address. Oh, that's cool. Now, if you'll hold out your hands, please. I'd like to plant on his handcuffs. Oh, and, by the way, these aren't made of rubber. For their guilty in violating the National Stolen Property Act, Troy Patterson and Jack Lowell were sentenced to serve a ten-year term in a federal penitentiary. Ruth Patterson received a sentence of seven years. For his complicity in the crime, the fence Frank Miller was imprisoned for five years. And thus was closed another case in the files of your FBI. Files that are as full as they are because, last year, there were almost one and a half million major crimes committed in this country. No human mind is equipped to understand the gigantic proportions of one and a half million major crimes. So perhaps it would be helpful to break that figure down. To tell you that since this program was on the air, in that period of less than a half hour, there have been 74 major crimes committed somewhere in the United States. 74 more jobs for your local police, your state law enforcement officers, and for your FBI. Have you given blood recently? If you can answer yes, your country is proud of you. But, yes, there's a but in this message of praise. The need for blood continues to be urgent. Besides our fighting men in Korea, we have thousands of hospitalized veterans fighting for life. Your blood can help them. In addition, there is a daily demand for blood in civilian hospitals. And beyond all this, we need to build blood plasma reserves against the possibility of disaster or enemy attack. Just one atomic attack on one American city would require vast quantities of whole blood and thousands of units of plasma in the first 24 hours alone. To meet and coordinate these needs, a national blood program has been set up with the Department of Defense, Civil Defense, and the Red Cross cooperating. You can help. Phone your local Red Cross for an appointment. It's easy and painless. Americans are rolling up their sleeves. Join them, won't you? Next week, we will dramatize another case from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It's subject, racketeering. It's title, Mr. Big Shot. The incidents used in tonight's broadcast are adapted from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. However, all names used are fictitious, and any similarity thereof to the names of places or persons living or dead is accidental. Tonight, the music was composed and conducted by Frederick Steiner. Direction was by Sid Goodwin. Your narrator was William Woodson and special agent Taylor was played by Sid Goodwin. And special agent Taylor was played by Stacey Harris. Others in the cast were Whitfield Conner, Helen Cleave, Lawrence Slake, Thurr-Rollinsen, and Gil Staten Jr. Your announcer is Bill Spargrove. This is your FBI is a very divine production. Stay tuned for the adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. There's fun for the whole family when Ozzie and Harriet come your way next. This program came to you from Hollywood. This is ABC Radio Network.