Spending the whole hight of September 11 on a search for armed idnapers, a party of French Police erectives' returned to headquarters at 9.30 a.m. on September 12 after Xeseuing Mr. Sion Ah-heu, Chief of the Personnel_and Trust. Department of the Shangha Commercial and Savings Bank, who was abduct ed on September 2. Ten of the gang Were arrested, two of whom were wounded.
Was rescued after a gunfhattle in a deserted village some Ristance beyond the Hungjao Aero. rome, (For six and a half hours 'Bhe party, encumbered with heavy tee] waistcoats, marched as fast, (possible over country paths, through heat and rice fields, and' crossed reeks. "After the rescue they had to walk for another two hours be-Yore they reached municipal) roads, triumphant although tired out.
The kidnapping took place at} B40 a.m, on September 2, when Mr. Sion stepped out of his house at 4 Rue Brenier de Montmorand enter a hired ear. Four men, two of hem carrying pistols, forced" Mr. WBien to get into the ear, which was Mhen driven off towards the Inter-ational Settlement. Some hours Qater it was found deserted on Monument Road, some distance rom the Hungjao Aerodrome, Sine then detectives kept hard at work fo try to get on to the track of the gang, who had first demanded $500 for providing food for' their Faptive, and later asked for $100, (000 for his ransom, On the evening the deteetives had gathered suffeient. information to start their raids. They Jett French Police headquarters at 8 pam, and went to the Sun Sun Hotel, where in Room No. 24 they arrested two men. There had been Three in the room, but one of them managed to escape just as the Police arrived.
The two captives were questioned By the detectives. One of them proved to be one of the gang's two caders, and from him it wag learnved that the other chief was living a house off the Hungiao Road. OW to this the detective party burried, but in the darkness were unable to find the place, It waa then decided to follow up the other ies provided by the prisoners, This was some time after 9 pin.
One of the clues called for a trip 0 a village some distance beyond the aerodrome, so the party went a station of the Public Safety Bureau and obtained an escort favo constables, This brought the (party up to a strength of 16, there Reing 12 Chinese detectives of the French Police, under M. Bardy, het do Division, and M. Berthier, Sous-Chet de Division.
The police motor-ears were dri as far as the Hungjao Aerodrom where the party alighted, and Mtarted off on what was to be one of the weariest tramps in most of their individual dives. For two and 4 half hours they waiked, fortunate. ly now assisted by bright moon-ight, before they arrived at a large village.
Here a house was raided at 12.90} am, The inmates proved to be an eld mn, two young men, and a young woman. The latter, it was noon discovered, was the sweetheart (Bf the second' gang-leader. From her it was learned that he" was Aiving at another village some distance away, and not in. the house jeff Hungjk> Road as was at first thought, None of the four were members of the gang.
For, another two hours the party furried slong paths and" fields, ankle-deep in mud at times, until two men were seen at the edge of field. The detectives hid belli handy fence, and sent the—gitl, hom they had brought with them, along a8 a decoy. As they walked (past the fence, the detectives sprang out and arrested the two men.
They were interrogated, and one lof them was found to be the second wang I He would not tell the Gelice party a single thing, and Snaintained a stolid silence.
The ether, however, was a little mure talkative, and the detectives learned of a house some distance away. where six men were lying, three of hein armed.
Takipg their prisoners with them, Jo party started off on yet another crest-country walk. This did not take as Tong as the others, cccupyjing an hour and a half, By this time the detectives were almost fnausted, but were becoming used stumbling along the country paths. [Nevertheless they had to keep on the alert, and they successfully reached the village.
The approach was made very cautiously, but even when they gut amongst the houses there was a trange stillness, Not a dog barked, land there was not a sound of any sort, except from the slight movements from members of the party. Carefully the detectives looked around, and to their surprise found that the village was deserted.
One of the prisoners was questioned, and he pointed out a large farm-house which showed. slight signs of repair as the gang's den. Quietly a cordon was thrown around the house, and then a small party Jerept in to investigate, composed of Bardy, M. Berthier and three Chinese detectives.
They walked through a door in the middle of one side of the house, down a passage, looking into rooms Jon either side that proved empty, Jand then out by a door on the other lo. Then they walked along the jsideof the house, turned the corner, and found a small door in the fend, Suddenly shots rang out, and bullets splintered the door and whistled over the heads of the detectives. The gang had heard the footsteps approaching and had promptly opened fire. At this moment the moon, which had been shining bright: was suddenly hidden by a clead and the detectives were deprived of ts welcome light. Nevertheless, they immediately replied with thei pistols and then rushed the door. Crashing in, they flung themselves at the men' they found inside and within a second or two had arrested them al The rest of the detectives gathered round at a call from M. Bardy. Jand the inmates of the room wers hauled out into the open and examined. One of them besought the newcomers not to shoot and continued to do so, until he suddenly caught sight of M, Bardy and 1 alized that the party was composed whereupon he immediately made himself known. This was the gang's victim, Mr. Sion, Altogether there were six of che gang guarding Mr. Sion, and, of these two were wounded by the shots from the detectives' pistols, one receiving a slight scalp wound and the other a bullet through 0 lung. The gang owned three pistols, Jail of which were used to fire at the detectives and which were seize ed. They had fired ten shots, while the police replied with eight before they rushed the room. 'Then the detectives did not use their guns, but utilized their fists and their' weight, to knock out the rear of the gang.
All this had occurred shortly after 4 am, and the party had an-ether long walk to get back to Shanghai. This time the party was not able to go so fast, as it was encumbered with prisoners, one of whom was badly wounded, and for whom little could be done at the time, The task had been completed. however, and there was little need for haste, and it was not until 6.30.m., after two hours walking, that the party returned to its ears.
First of all a call was paid at a police station of the Public Safety Bureau where a brief report was made as to what had occurred, and then the party moved off to' the headquarters of the Public Safety' Bureau in the and it was not until 9.30 a.m. that the detectives returned to French Police headquarters, with their eaptives, dog-tired, but with the satis faction of having done a geod work and done it well.
Fortunately M. Bardy and M. Berthier are both athletic, but some, of the detectives were greatly exhausted. M, Bardy was a keen foot baller for a long time, while M. Rerthier's sporting instincts follow-bicycle racing, and both of them have kept fit. The party was on the job continuously, however, for' 134 "hours, and had a very hard, time. They hal nothing to eat antu 5.30 am. when they managed to bay some bean toup at a village.
Of the five recent major kidnappings, three of the victims have now been released, two as the result of energetic motor. patrols, carried out by detectives and police im Bubbling Well District, and the'
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.