AUDACIOUS JEWEL ROBBERY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 33, 2 November 1907, Page 15

AUDACIOUS JEWEL ROBBERY.

' r ■„',, ' ' -*-—-— ■ -Invthe rush and bustle attendant upon the departure tho: 9 a.m. Continental train .froni'.Gliding,'Cross Station recently a re'markably audacious jewel robbery was cffecitod.'.vThe victim was Mrs. J. H. T. Keeves, of.'the Grove,JWinchrabre \Hill, who, with her .: husband; was en route; to Ostend. ■• ;.-'■. -'Mr. and Mrs. Keoves arrived jn their carjriagQ at the'station with their luggago on the top of; the'vbhicle. lii '.addition, to several , trunks and boxes, there was a smaller dress-ing-bag, in which was a';jewel caso. 'Tho 'Casio contaiued a diamond necklace, a diamond pendant, some bracelets, "several rings, and brooches. A porter took charge of tho luggagoirconveying it ,into--,the.:.station to, bo labelled, and the thioves must have hurriedly 'inspected it in its transit from tho cab. Gayner;'•'.Mr.' Keoves's coachman, heard Mrs. Keeves remark to the porter: "Bo careful what you arc doing with that bag." It was, perhaps, this remark, overheard .by tho ■■ thieves, that gave'them-their cue; ,■• \ The porter placed the trunks in the vicinity of-the luggage-weighing and stepped away procure.tho necessary labels. His back }j'ds i jtnnied..foribnly: : a .brief: periqd,\ and there' were oilier' passougers all"'round him' giving instructions concerning the destination .of their luggage. But tho timo was all-sufli-cient for tho thioves. Tho porter turned round, labels in hand, and immediately observed that the' dressing-bag was missing. Though no time was lost in searching fpr,-the;thicf, both he and the dressing-bag ha'd vanished. ' •./, Several well-dressed men; were most likely concerned in the theft,- because any suspic-ions-looking character must; surely havo been i ob3oryed by the railway police, who are al- ; ways on the qui vivo prior;; to thodoparturq of a , Continental train...-Most" likely tiio man who actually committed the theft was shielded '.from observation at tho critical moment by '. soyoral others. Thore is a strong probability, '. alsbj.thatihe employed ono of the '.'dummy" handbags which are greatly favoured by railway thioves.- These areiiarge weather- : worn,bags in,appearance,. but in reality they are nothing more than shells.' .'At the bottom ' is a trap-door ■arrange'raont;/ with" ; ;sqyeral' claw-like steel 'spikes: , ' ; '.•■'-- 1•• V la-such a case, as this, all the thief would need Jo, do .'would be to drop this "dummy" bag,for an instant over the smaller dressingjbag.:, Upon lifting it again the dressing-bag would, have disappeared, .-bping-heM- safely ' within, the, larger receptacle.. :/',•'.'. - : :'