 The Equalable Life Assurance Society presents this is your FBI. This is your FBI. The official broadcast from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Presented as a public service by the Equalable Life Assurance Society of the United States and the Equalable Society is representative in your community. Rain isn't the only thing that can ruin a summer vacation. Worry is another. Worry about the financial future of your family. Well, why not slip some of that burden onto the broad shoulders of the Equalable Life Assurance Society? The Equalable Shoulders have the combined broadness of nearly four million members who have joined forces to protect one another. For the peace of mind that only well-planned life insurance can give, see your Equalable Society representative. He'll arrange to give you a lifelong vacation from worry. Tonight's FBI file, The Ambitious Widow. There have been many wise and practical suggestions offered to your FBI and to every other law enforcement agency on methods of curbing the current serious crime wave. Most of those suggestions had merit, but of them all, only one was an absolute preventative. That one was eternal vigilance. Law abiding citizens have a tendency to forget that crime, like many other things, runs in cycles. Let one crime seem to be successful and there will be a series of such crimes. Then, because the gas has been filled, those crimes cease and another type will begin. But there's no way of knowing which new trend will begin. And that is why your FBI tells you that there's only one way for you, the citizen, to help fight the crime wave. That way, to repeat, is eternal vigilance. Tonight's FBI file opens on a rainy day in a quiet cemetery near a large midwestern town. Two of the mourners are talking, as in the background, a solemn prayer is being intoned as the cast is about to be lowered. Have pleased all mighty dogs with his wise providence. Poor Lou. Yeah. You know, I ain't gay, I still can't believe he's dead. Yeah, I surely. I saw him the day before he died. Never looked healthier to me. He was a nice guy. I liked working for him. Yeah, Lou was okay. You got one good thing about it. He went out legitimate. No guns or nothing. I wonder who take over now. Hank, Hank, that ain't no way to talk. Why not? Who ain't even buried yet. He's dead, ain't he? I know, but I was thinking. I've been working with Lou for better than ten years. I'm a logical guy. Hank, let's talk about it later. Ashes to ashes and dust to dust. Amen. Amen. Hell, let's go over and see, man. Okay. Hello, man. Hello, Hank. Okay. We, uh, we want to tell you how sorry we are. Yeah. Thank you. If there's anything we can do, just say the word. You're very sweet. You're still gonna live at the hotel? No. No, I bought a boat. Are you gonna live on it? Yes. Hey, that's a good idea. You can get away for a while. Help you forget. I don't plan to go away. Where is the boat? Tied up at the foot of 14th Street. You're gonna keep it there? Yes. What for? Hank, Hank, lay off the question. I'm sorry, Ted. I'm keeping the boat at 14th Street. Hank, for a very good reason. So many piers near there to steal from. Hank, there's a lot of boats tied up here. It's a public dock. Anybody can come in. Well, how do you tell which one is Anne's? Ted, she told me the name. It's the dolphin. And there it is. Where? That black job down at the end. See? Oh, yeah. Hey, that's a big boat. Yeah. Hey, I don't see Anne. Well, hail her. Oh, hi there. Anybody aboard? Hey, there she is. Get the boat, boy. Okay. Hi, Anne. Hello. It's so nice of you to come down to see me. So, as we got the word, you were looking for us. We came right over. It's quite a bug. Well, I think it should be good to work with. You know, when Lou and I were first married, we spent our honeymoon on a cruiser like this. Oh. We stole enough to make us rich. Stole what? Stop off piers. Oh, Anne. Yeah? Is that what you plan to do again? Yes. That's kind of tough for a dame, isn't it? Well, I'm really depending on Lou's friends to carry me through. Is that why you're sent for us? Yes. You're the last two boys on my list. I've talked to all the others. They're all coming along with me. You, uh, got definite plans for action? Yes. Would you care to join us? Okay. Good. Good. How about you, Ted? Anything you say is good enough for me. Fine. Come on down to the cabin then. I'll tell you about our first job. When is it? Tonight. Hank. Oh. Please cut the motors. Right. We'll drift in just right. Hey, look at those crates of silk. We should be able to load all of them onto the boat in 10 minutes. What about the watch? We always stay the front. You case this thing pretty good. We always said it pays to be careful. Oh, yeah. How much is that silk worth, man? It ought to be about $30,000 in that load. That much? Surely. Silk's back on the market, but it's still difficult to get. Here we are. Tie us up, Hank. Ted, you and the boys start working. All right. Okay, boys. Up you go. Hey, man, I've got you guys. What is it? Someone is coming down the pier. Can you handle this, Hank? Hey, what's going on here? What are you doing in that boat? Well, I'll tell you, mister. We sprang a leak, and it looks like this pier... Okay, let's finish loading and get out of here. Nick and the field office of your FBI. Special Agent Jim Taylor enters his office to find Elliott Sheridan waiting for him. Hello, Elegant. Hi, Jim. You look like you've done a hard day's work. I have. I've been climbing all over Pier 27. I was hoping you'd come into the office before you went out there. Oh, why? When I checked in this morning from Salt Lake City, I finished my report. The boss assigned me to work with you. Hey, that's fine. Well, there's plenty of work for both of us to do. Oh, what's the story? It's a theft from an interstate chippin'. Done with the boat? That's right. What was stolen? Over $30,000 with a silk. Any clues? No, we can't tell yet. Watchman was slugged, but he may be able to help us. How? Says he got a pretty good look at one of the men in the boat. He's almost certain he can identify that man. Where's the watchman now? He's done a police headquarters looking over pictures. If he finds the man he saw, they'll call us. What's the next step? Well, I've alerted all dock owners to be doubly careful, keep their goods well guarded at night. Any chance of locating the stolen silk? I've already contacted every silk wholesaler in town. No luck, though, huh? Well, none yet. But they're going to call in if they come across any of the loot. What do we do now? Well, there's nothing much we can do, Elliot, but wait until we hear from that watchman. Come on, have a drink. You buying? Sure. Okay. Hey, Matt, couple of rides. Right. Where you been? I went to the boat. Oh, did you get paid? Sure. How much? Huh? How much did the man give you? Five bills. Five hundred? Uh-huh. No wonder she wanted to pay everybody off one at a time. Hey, what are you talking about? I spoke to the other guys. They got a hundred a piece. What? Is that all? Yeah. That's eight hundred for them and five for you. That's thirteen hundred she's paid so far. Out of eight thousand. She told me she only got two thousand. I checked up. She got eight Gs in cash. Well, I'll tell you one thing. She ain't going to pay me off in the dark. I did a lot of work. I arranged for the trucks to pick up the stuff off the dock. I even arranged for the fence to get rid of it. Well? I guess there's always trouble when you work for a dame. They don't have to be. Out of your handle, I'm right. How much are you going to ask for? Twenty-five percent. That's two Gs. She won't go for that. I am. Come on over with me. I'll show you. I can't go right now. Why not? I've got a date. Look, you go on down to the boat. I'll meet you later. Any news from the watchman? Yes. While you were out, police headquarters called. The watchman definitely identified a man named Henry Davis. Salius Hank Davis. What's the record on Davis? I got it right over here. Let's take a look at it. Twenty-three a rest. Starting, you'll notice, when he was fifteen. I see one of these arrests was for hijacking. I would tie him in with this kind of a job. There's an even stronger tie in than that down there. See that arrest back in 34? It's down to the bottom there. Well, at 34, yeah, here it is. Well, what about it? I thought I remembered that job, so I checked up on it. You find anything? Mm-hmm. Along with Davis, the police also arrested a man named Lou Mercer. The one who died last week? Same one. And at that time, Mercer had a gang of river pirates stealing stuff on both sides of the river. That is a strong tie engine. Now all I have to do is find Davis. Oh, by the way, you pick up anything down at the docks? No, I spoke to the watchman on the adjoining dock. They didn't see anything. No clues of any kind? Not a thing. Looks like they must have glided up to the pier with their motors off. They weren't even heard. Yeah, I guess that's the way they would operate. There's talk, excuse me. Sure. Special Agent Taylor. Yes, Sergeant? Oh, yeah, that's fine. Oh, wait till I get a pencil and I'll write that down. Give me that pencil. Sure. Thanks. Okay, go ahead, Sergeant. 721 Oak Street. Room 129. Got it. Y'all, thanks very much, Sergeant. Something on Davis? Yes, that's the car we've been waiting for. We've got Davis' address. I'm going over there now. Ahoy there! Anybody aboard? Who's there? It's me, Nan Pet. I was supposed to meet Hank here. You see Hank? He came down here. He's very angry. Yeah, I know. He was sore when he left me. Did he tell you what he wanted? Yeah, more though. And I gotta admit, he had a point there, Nan. How'd you say that? Well, after all, he did a lot of work. Me, too. I got the boat. Yeah, I know. And I lined up the job. Sure, but... How can you say that you boys did so much work? Well, I should have got more than 500, Nan, after all. You got 8,000 for the stuff. I suppose I did. What about it? Well, I want a bigger cut. How much? Same as Hank. You know what he asked for? Yeah, 25%. That's right. Did you give it to him? No. Well, what did Hank do? He tried to use violence. He cut me around. What happened? Come over to the cabin. Look there. On the floor. Hank. It was dead. You sure? Yes. We will return in just a moment to tonight's case from the files of your FBI. See that happy-looking chap over there? He's a professional worrylifter. You mean he goes around cheering people up, giving them good advice, and so on? No, he does more than that, Ed. He's a specialist. He lends a sympathetic ear to people in trouble, sure. But he also lends a helping hand. He not only acts, but he talks as well. Oh, sounds like a man everybody ought to know. Oh, he is. He's your equitable society representative. If fear about your family's future is destroying your peace of mind, you'll find that your equitable society representative really knows the answers. For instance, right now, you may be doing some unnecessary worrying, simply because you haven't heard of readjustment income. As a matter of fact, I never did hear of it. The Equitable Society's Readjustment Income Plan provides extra income for the widow during the two toughest years. The two years immediately following her husband's death, years in which he is adjusting the family way of life to a lowered income. You know, expenses can't be reduced overnight. It takes time. And that's why every life insurance program should provide readjustment income for extra help during the two toughest years. Say, this readjustment income plan sounds okay to me. Is it expensive? Why, it may not cost you a cent. It may require only a simple rearranging of your present life insurance program. In any event, the man to see is your professional worrylifter, your Equitable Society representative. Look in the phonebook for the Equitable Life Assurance Society. That's E-Q-U-I-T-A-V-L-E. Or send a postcard care of this station to the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. And now back to the FBI file, The Ambitious Widow. It is not the purpose of tonight's case from the files of your FBI to tell you that the mobs of criminals operating in this country today are being run by women. Nothing could be further from the truth. And yet women are active participants in the current crime wave. That fact has become more obvious as each year's records are studied. And it is an actual statistic that in the past year, women were so active that of all arrests made for criminal homicide in the United States, the number of women arrested exceeded 10%. One other fact emerges in the study of that same table of arrested persons. And that is that there is virtually no crime or method of operation too difficult for the lady criminal. Yes, in this field, too, women have definitely proven that they are not the weaker sex. Tonight's file continues in the FBI field office. Special Agent Jim Taylor has just returned in the search of Hank Davis' apartment. Jim, find anything up at Davis' place? No, not a thing. Any of his neighbors able to help? I wouldn't if they could. That kind of a place. It's one thing that bothers me, though. Oh, what's that? Davis didn't show up all night. I checked this morning before I came in. He couldn't have gotten in the back way, could he? No, no. We've had the building and a complete surveillance. You don't suppose he found out he'd been identified by the watchman, do you? Why not see how he could have? You think he skipped town? No. I believe he's still around. Well, what's the next step, Jim? Do we wait for Davis to show up? No. No, on the way in, I asked the file room to send up that copy of Davis' record. We might get the names of some of his friends from that to start checking on them. Alfie, I'll get it. Special Agent Taylor. Oh, yes, Sergeant. Well, you have? Yeah, thanks for calling. We'll be right down. That was the Moorah galley. They've just identified a body down there. It's Mr. Hank Davis. Oh, hi there, man. Is that you, Ted? Yeah, OK to come aboard. Come ahead. I thought you might still be sleeping. No. Been up for hours. Did you get rid of the package? What package? Hank. Oh, yes. Tied some weights on him and dropped him overboard. Right here? Surely, why? I suppose he comes up. Didn't you ever hear of the current? Oh. Ted, stop worrying. OK. Do any of the other guys know about Hank? No. Well, suppose they find out. Well. They might not like it. I'm afraid they'll have to like it. They'll teach them that a woman can be efficient, too. Did you call that number I gave you? Oh, for the truck, yeah. He'll be here at six in the morning. Good. I call the rest of the boys. They're ready. Will we go tonight? At midnight. I hope it ain't too soon after the last job. Ted, just let me do the worrying. Come here. I want to show you something. What is it? You'll see. Look under that canvas. Hey, a machine gun. And the way it's mounted, you see, you can swing it to cover any angle. What do you want with a machine gun? Just in case of trouble. Oh. This is going to be your job. The gun? Yes. You stay back here from the time we leave until we get home. OK. And I don't have to tell you what to do, Ted. There's trouble. You use it. It's over this way, Ellie. The body is running here. Yeah, here we are. All right. There's a bullet hole in his head. Must have been dead when he hit the water. According to the coroner, he was. Davis' personal effects over on that table. Let's take a look at him. Right. I guess these are just the papers and money he had on him. Yes. All of his clothes were over there. He wouldn't be carrying much money, was he? That's right, fellow. He just pulled a big job. That key you've got there won't help us. That's Kiwi's apartment. See, the 129 stamped into it. Oh, yeah. That's his room number, wasn't it? Hmm. Phone number on this slip of paper. I wonder what this is. Maybe it's a girl. Could be. Oh, wait a minute. This exchange is in the business district. Ellie, let's get out of here. I'm going to make a phone call. See what belongs to this number. I'll call that number. It was a trucking outfit. A trucking outfit? Uh-huh. It could have been in on the job. No, I checked up on them down at the office. They're legitimate. Well, what do they have to report? They picked up some crates of silk from the docket before the 14th Street. Who paid for the job? They were paid at the warehouse where they delivered the silk. All right, Kiwi. I had the police and the radio patrol car run to the warehouse. Pick anybody up? No, there wasn't anyone at the warehouse, but the silk is there. Hey, the office can find out who owns the warehouse from the tax record. It'll probably turn out to be David. Well, the office is already working on that angle. I don't think David's was the head man, though. Oh, why not? Well, the trucking outfit I spoke to said they got another call just about an hour ago. With another order? That's right. To pick up another load tomorrow morning and at the same dock. Why don't we get on to the dock and pick up whoever's anchored there? Well, the 14th Street pier is open to the public. It is always about a dozen boats tied up down there. But I've got an idea. Let's get back to the office and we'll work from there. I know the police will want to join us. On the river that night there were three large fast boats manned by special agents of your FBI. Boat number one with special agent Jim Taylor was idling in the middle of the river. Boat number two with special agent Elliot Sheridan aboard was north of 14th Street. Boat number three was to the south. Special agent Taylor is talking over the two-way radio of the boats. I see movement aboard a large black boat. There are about 10 men aboard. It's now pulling away from the dock. The boat is headed north. Sheridan, Sheridan on boat two. Have you spotted her yet? Yes, Jim. Just picked her up in the glass. Fine. Now start up the river yourself and stay in front of her. Right. I'll follow her from behind and check with you later. Taylor. Come in, Sheridan. You see what she's doing now, Jim? She's headed in toward a pier. That's right. All right, stop your motors and stay where you are. We're going to follow her in. Boats two and three. The name on the boat is the Dauphin. It's pulling into pier 40 now. Come up behind boat number one and give me some cover. The Dauphin is now tied up to the pier. They're starting to load. We can nail them in the act and start to close in. What is it? How's it going? We've got one more crate to load and then we're finished. Oh. Good. Why aren't you standing by that gun? I wanted to see how it was going. Well, please get back there. Look, what is it? Your motors. You boys, quiet a minute. I hear them too. If there was only a moon, we could see. They're coming closer. Hey, those lights! They're shining right on it. Nan, where you are, Oliver? Nan, it's cops. Yes. What do we do? Look, there's more than one boat. I know. They got us cut off. Well, they aren't taking us. Huh? Get on that gun. Oh, Nan, look. Do as I say. Oh, oh, oh, Nan, come back here. Nan, they're alongside. Keep up with this boat. Get away from that gun, lady. Sure. Let go of me. All right. Elliot, cover the rest of them. I'll bring our lady right over to join you. All members of the hijacking gang were tried and sentenced to serve long terms in the federal penitentiary for larceny from interstate shipments. Nan Mercer was turned over to local authorities to be placed on trial for murder. And thus, another band of criminals was broken up by the cooperative efforts of local police who supplied the launches and of your FBI. Everywhere across America, that kind of cooperation is taking place. And as in tonight's case, every means of communication and transportation is being used to narrow the circle around the criminal and to keep narrowing it until he is trapped, arrested, and convicted. In just a moment, we will tell you about next week's exciting case from the files of your FBI. Just one second, Mr. Keating. I want to check and see if I'm on the beam about the Equitable Society's Readjustment Income Plan. My understanding is that this plan would give my wife extra income during the first two years after my death. You've got it straight, Ed. Extra cash every month for two years to give her time to adjust her expenses to a new standard of living. Sounds like a mighty fine idea to me. Then let me suggest that you get in touch with your Equitable Society representative without delay. Let him show you how little it costs to provide your wife with Equitable Readjustment Income. Call your Equitable Representative soon. Or send a postcard care of this station to the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. Next week, we will bring you another colorful story from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the diamond-studded double cross. The incidents used in tonight's Equitable Life Assurance Society'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 persons living or dead is accidental. Tonight, the music was composed and conducted by Frederick Steiner. The author was Jerry Lewis. Your narrator was Dean Carlton, and special agent Taylor was played by Stacey Harris. This is your FBI as a Jerry Divine production. This is Larry Keating speaking for the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States and the Equitable Society's representative in your community. And inviting you to tune in again next week at the same time, when the Equitable Life Assurance Society will bring you another thrilling story from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The diamond-studded double cross on this is your FBI. This is ABC, the American Broadcasting Company.