Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 55, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 March 1915 — SPANISH WILLIE KING OF THIEVES [ARTICLE]

SPANISH WILLIE KING OF THIEVES

Rules over School where Young Crooks are Assigned to Him to be Trained for Crime. HE HAS NEVER KEN CONVICTED Known to Be Brains of Burglar Gang, His Cunning and Their Loyalty Shield Him. Boston, Mass. —As a successful merchant often starts his career as an errand boy or a stock clefk, so the successful burglar begins as a petty thief. It is only after a long course in the school of crime that the average lawbreaker is able to graduate into the professional class. He must prove himself worthy of his steel before he is permitted to occupy a representative position in the gang, where he meets other successful criminals on an equal footing, and where his judgment will be considered worth while.

In the back room of a saloon at the junction of two downtown streets, Spanish Willie meets his “forty thieves.’’ They are an organization of loft burglars who have given much trouble to the police. They recived their name from a romantic member of the force with a taste for the Arabian Nights. These forty young men come to Spanish Willie for assignments, suggestions and advice in connection with their professional work. Not one of them is over 30 years old, and most of them are barely out of their teens. All of them look up to'Spanish Willie as a leader in his line —a leader of whom to be proud. He in turn often says to his followers: “Just keep your eyes on them. Every one of them will make his mark as a package man and then as a loft man.” Spanish Willie is one of the best known and cleverest thieves in New York City. He makes a specialty of burglarizing lofts in which silks or furs are stored, or which are used in the manufacture of clothing.

In a previous article it was pointed out how the average criminal generally leaves behind him certain earmarks which identify his work to the police. In view of this it may well be asked, “How does it happen that Spanish Willie is not in jail?” The answer is this: The marks which this man leaves behind are not of the kind that can be proved in court as legal evidence. He is proud of his achievements, particularly of those which he accomplished in such a manner that he could not be “nailed,” although the police were morally certain of the identity of the perpetrator. One might think that loft burglary is a simple matter, but it is not, for it involves several distinct operations, each of them requiring a considerable degree of skill. / First, a well-stored loft must be located and the habits of the proprietors and workmen learned; then a way must be devised for getting into it without coming in contact with any ofthe burglar alarms which are now in almost universal use.

Next, the goods must be carried out of the place and loaded on a truck in such a way as not to arouce the suspicion of the policeman on the beat, in case he observes the work, and finally they must be disposed to a person who Is “right.” Spanish Willie uses his confederates to assist him in his .robberies. One of the forty thieves may get a job as a driver or a porter a few days before the date set for the crime. Thus he -can “get in line” on the contents of a certain loft building. The procedure from then on varies to meet the conditions of individual cases. The usual way is for the leader to rent a room over or adjoining a loft. From this it is possible to cut or saw his way into the desired loft without touching the alarm wires. The silks or furs to be stolen are then carried through the opening. If a watchman interferes a blackjack effectually quiets him. Having first waited for a time, when the patrolman on the beat is around the corner, or has been lured a safe distance away by a confederate, the burglars will then load their booty on a waiting truck. Sometimes the stolen goods are carried to a room that has been hired in the vicinity to await removal at the convenience of the burglar. So large were the sums of money involved in the disposal of goods stolen from lofts and trucks that a number of "fences” had to be found to conduct the affairs with profit These men were bold enough to hire stores on lower Broadway < and. Canal street where they posed as legitimate business men. But all the while" they were working in co-operation with receivers of stolen property in Philadelphia and other large cities.

Idka Spanish Willie, most loft burglars and their close allies, the truck thieves, usually start as package thieves. They are almost always young and they operate in groups of three, known as the “advance guard,” the “lookout” and the “workman.” Their primary object is to find a delivery wagon which is ready to discharge its load at some particular house. Once they have sighted their prey, the “lookout” drops back to keep watch for the patrolman on the beat, while the other two walk on at a brisk ■ - J.- ■ T- . -J-;- » -

pace toward the destination of the load. If the delivery is being made in an apartment house the “advance guard” goes into the hall following the driver, so as to make sure that he is safely inside the building and out of sight of his charge. Then, if conditions are favorable, this crook gives a signal to his associate outside the “workman,” who In turn signals the “lookout" If the latter signals back that the coast Is clear, the accomplice Immediately jumps into the wagon and steals any parcels he can lay his hands on. ■ He then retreats toward the “lookout” who meets him at the next corner and takes the packages. This man, of course, has not been seen either in ,the hallway or on the wagon, so, if he is caught with the goods he can say that he met a stranger, who offered him 25 cents to carry them to a certain address.

With this defense he very frequently arises a “reasonable doubt” in the minds of jurors. Many of the master thieves in New York conduct what, for want of a better name, may be termed schools for thieves. In these their young followers and accomplices are instructed in the technique of their calling in order to increase their efficiency and also to teach them how to act and what and what not to say when arrested and tried. Isador Raeder, a master truck thief and “fence,” was also one of these “schoolmasters.” Spanish Willie, Raeder and men of their type are constantly looking for boys from 14 to 18 years old who can be induced to take up crime as a career.

The boys are approached, not by the leader directly, but by one of his confederates, with a suggestion that there are easier ways of making money than by working for it This Is sure to draw an inquiry as to how it can be made. The full nature of the scheme is not explained at first. The inquirer is merely told that all he has to do is to drive a truck for a short distance or stand on a corner for a few minutes and watch. A boy of weak moral fiber, working for a few dollars a week, is almost sure to jump at the chance, and the descent is easy. Men like Spanish Willie recognize, too, and make use of the gang spirit among boys and young men. They capitalize as it were, the social Instinct that every boy has—the inclination te co-operate wtih his fellows and to combine for some common end —and they divert this to a criminal purpose. They use the power of example, the young fellow’s natural tendency te hero worship, to cement the gang together, and by gradual steps lead the boy from comparatively Innocent activity to a definitely criminal career. ; Then, the natural sense of loyalty, Inherent in nearly every youngster, and the general contempt for a traitor, each plays its part in giving the leaders a grip on their followers. New York has many of these gangs, and to deal with them is one of the great problems before the police, the social workers and the other representatives of the law.