The Big Pick

Originally Aired: December 8, 1953

Dragnet #225, "The Big Pick," Sergeant Joe Friday and Officer Frank Smith of the Bunco Fugitive Division tackle an organized gang of pickpockets plaguing Los Angeles. The case becomes personal when elderly Lewis Bonning visits their office in desperation. The heartbroken widower had withdrawn his entire life savings of $5,200 from the bank that morning, planning to move to Chicago to live with his daughter. While having coffee at a busy market, someone expertly lifted the money from his pocket without him noticing until he reached the street. The theft happened so smoothly that Bonning can't identify anyone suspicious or remember being jostled.

Friday and Smith recognize the hallmark work of a professional pickpocket team, complete with specialized roles including a "jug mob" who scouts victims at banks, a "shover" who creates diversions, and a "wire" who performs the actual theft. After Bonning fails to identify any suspects from mug shots, the detectives turn to an unusual source: Slim Ramos, a reformed pickpocket now running a wheel of fortune booth on the Santa Monica pier, hoping his inside knowledge of the criminal world might provide the lead they desperately need.