The Sting at a Puyallup Avenue Saloon
A trio of men are robbed of cash and a gold watch by a woman acting as a decoy in a local saloon.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Guy King, J. Peterson and an unknown man were robbed of money and valuables by a gang of thieves in a Puyallup Avenue saloon Tuesday night. The men used a woman as a stall in securing the valuables of their victims. Yesterday, officer James K. Smith learned where the men were and notified headquarters. Detective Moran was detailed and soon brought the two men in. When searched, a gold watch was found on one of them and it is supposed that this watch belonged to the unknown man. No money was found on the men, although they secured $7 from their victims. The woman has not been located as yet.
“The men used a woman as a stall in securing the valuables of their victims.”
Puyallup Avenue has long been a center for industrial activity and transit, and historical reports of 'decoy' crimes highlight how saloons served as both the social hub and the site of high-stakes, sometimes dangerous, interactions for laboring men in early Tacoma.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.