Caught by Decoy Letter
Item
- Title
- Caught by Decoy Letter
- Source
- Richmond Dispatch {VA}
- Date
- 1900-02-22
- page
- 8
- Identifier
- https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn85038614/1900-02-22/ed-1/?sp=8
- Crime
- Theft
- Subject
- Theft; Arson; Multiple Thefts
- Gender of alleged offender
- Male alleged offender
- Gender of alleged victim
- Male alleged victim; Female alleged victim
- Law enforcement involved
- Detective
- Stage of the Legal System
- Arrest
- Location
- In-State; Newport News; VA
- Length of story
- 506 words
- Description
-
United States Post-Office Inspectors D. C. Owings and J. H. Irving, of Washington, have just made two of the cleverest arrests for robbing the mails ever reported in this State. This morning they trapped George E. Evans, stamp clerk in the city post-office, with a decoy letter and he now stands charged with intercepting letters mailed here and taking money from them. The inspectors came here from Berkley Va., near Norfolk where they yesterday arrested Allen B. Norman, mail messenger between that city and Norfolk against whom a similar charge is lodged. A decoy letter was also used there. The work here was done so quickly and cleverly the even Postmaster Fred Read and his staff of nearly a score of men were aware that an investigation was on until the inspectors announced their presence in the city this morning. Evans is the son of Edward Evans, of 2664 Richmond street, Philadelphia, a wealthy jeweler and optician. He is well known and popular in societies, and clubs, and has a wife and two children. He has been employed in the post-office for a year and has had the confidence of the postmaster and his brother employees. He has well-
known family connections in the State. For the past six or seven months Postmaster Read has been receiving complaints frequently that letters containing money and mailed here had never reached their destinations. He investigated and decided that the fault was elsewhere. Complaints continued to come in and several days ago he went to Washington and asked Chief Inspector W. B. Smith to put his men on the case. Prior to this he had written a number of letters to Washington expressing confidence that the tampering had been done outside of his office. Nothing more was heard of the matter until this morning, when the inspectors appeared. They came here yesterday afternoon and without making their presence known, mailed a decoy-letter containing $1 addressed to the National Tribune, at Washington. One of them followed the mail messenger to the
depot, boarded the train, examined the Washington sack, and found the letter. Last night another letter addressed to a lady in Staunton, was deposited in the post office. It contained five $1 notes
This morning Inspector Irving again followed the messenger to the depot and boarded the outgoing train with the sacks he found this letter to be missing and wired inspector Owings from Williamsburg Owings went to the post office accompanied by Deputy United States Marshall West,
learned who the last man was in the office last night and had Evans searched, and found five $1 bills in his possession the ones he had mailed the night before. Evans admitted having
burned the envelopes, he also admits that he intercepted other letters. He was given a hearing before Commissioner Garrett and sent on to the May term of the Federal Court. He is now held on $2,500 bail. The inspectors say Evans's thefts may run up to $500, but the post-office attaches believe they will not exceed $10.
