Dragnet: The Big Dig 12/07/1954

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Dragnet – “The Big Dig” (12/07/1954)

Podcast: Choice Classic Radio Detectives
Episode: Dragnet: The Big Dig
Date: November 25, 2025
Host: Choice Classic Radio
Main Theme:
This episode of Dragnet thrusts listeners into a tense missing person’s investigation that turns into a murder case. Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Frank Smith must piece together confusing leads, family tensions, and forensic evidence to solve the disappearance of Margaret “Maggie” Shane. Set in postwar Los Angeles, the story combines hard-boiled realism, procedural police work, and a sobering look at personal tragedy.

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Key Discussion Points & Episode Breakdown

1. The Case Begins: Disappearance and Suspicion

Timestamps: 00:49 – 03:00

• Summary:
  The story opens with Mrs. Karen Moffat reporting her sister Maggie missing, adamant that something is amiss. She insists that Maggie’s husband, Gordon Shane, is responsible:

  “I want you to arrest Maggie’s husband. …Because he killed her.”
  (Karen Moffat, 02:50–02:53)

• Notable Moment:
  Mrs. Moffat’s forthright accusation sets an accusatory and suspicious mood.

  “We were pretty close. Hardly no secrets from each other.”
  (Karen Moffat, 02:35)

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2. Investigating the Shanes: Home and Husband

Timestamps: 03:00 – 10:13

• Garage Evidence:
  Friday and Smith search the Shanes’ home and garage, finding suspicious blood stains. The crime lab is called in for analysis.

  “Looks like somebody tried to hide it. Blood stains.”
  (Sergeant Joe Friday, 03:00)

• Interview with Gordon Shane:
  At his workplace, Gordon Shane insists he hasn’t seen Maggie since she left after an argument. He blames his sister-in-law for meddling and claims Maggie had many male admirers.

  “Everywhere she went, there was some guy trying to make time. Might have been someone special. I wouldn’t know.”
  (Gordon Shane, 07:13)

• Blood Stain Explanation:
  Shane claims he cut his foot in the garage—before Maggie left—and offers to show the wound as proof.

• Detective Tone:
  Joe Friday's questioning is relentless but calm, pushing Shane to clarify dates and actions despite his evasiveness.

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3. Mounting Evidence & Doubt

Timestamps: 10:43 – 12:09

• Shane’s Frustration:
  Shane wonders if he can sue his sister-in-law for her accusations, revealing personal animosity.

  “If I get out of this, can I bring suit against my sister-in-law?... Seems there should be something I can do to close her mouth.”
  (Gordon Shane, 10:44–10:57)

• Handwriting and Timeline Contradictions:
  Checks written and signed by Maggie after her supposed disappearance cast doubt on Shane’s version of events.

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4. Police Interrogation and New Suspect

Timestamps: 12:09 – 16:18

• Jail Interrogation:
  Shane maintains his innocence, and detectives pursue signature verification on the checks.

• Forensic Results:
  The crime lab confirms the blood stains in the garage match Shane’s blood type, not Maggie’s.

  “Stains on the floor aren’t hers. They belong to Shane.”
  (Frank Smith, 16:14)
  This exonerates Gordon Shane as the likely killer.

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5. Shifting Focus: The Bar and Leonard Purdy

Timestamps: 16:43 – 19:33

• Following Maggie’s Trail:
  Interviews at Maggie’s local bar introduce Leonard Purdy, a small-time, alcoholic regular who was close with Maggie.

  “Guess if you had to nail it down, it’d be Leonard.”
  (Bartender, 17:16)

• Purdy’s Background:
  The detectives learn Purdy recently left a mental hospital, has a record, and may have unpredictable violent tendencies.

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6. Locating the Suspect and Breakthrough Confession

Timestamps: 20:56 – 24:30

• Tracking Purdy:
  Police trace Purdy to a pawnshop and boarding house, where they find him—still wearing Maggie’s fur coat.

  “This coat… It’s got Margaret Shane’s name in [it].”
  (Sergeant Joe Friday, 22:13–22:16)

• Confrontation and Confession:
  Initially denying involvement, Purdy breaks down:

  “I killed her, but I don’t know where she is.”
  (Leonard Purdy, 22:36)

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7. Desert Search and Resolution

Timestamps: 24:30 – End

• Locating the Body:
  Guided by Purdy and auto rental records, detectives drive into the Mojave Desert, where he directs them to where he buried Maggie after beating her to death during a drunken argument.

  “Over there, behind the bushes.”
  (Leonard Purdy, 24:21)

• Sobering Regret:
  Purdy laments his inability to stay sober, blaming his drinking for everything that went wrong:

  “If I could just stay away from it, I wouldn’t have any problems. I want to give it up. If I could just find a way.”
  (Leonard Purdy, 24:50)

• Epilogue / Case Disposition:
  The narrator confirms Purdy pled guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to five years to life.

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Notable Quotes

• “I want you to arrest Maggie’s husband. …Because he killed her.”
  — Karen Moffat, 02:50–02:53

• “Looks like somebody tried to hide it. Blood stains.”
  — Joe Friday, 03:00

• “I didn’t kill her. Now look, leave me alone. When do I get to call a lawyer?”
  — Gordon Shane, 14:21

• “Stains on the floor aren’t hers. They belong to Shane.”
  — Frank Smith, 16:14

• “Guess if you had to nail it down, it’d be Leonard.”
  — Bartender, 17:16

• “I killed her, but I don’t know where she is.”
  — Leonard Purdy, 22:36

• “If I could just stay away from it, I wouldn’t have any problems. I want to give it up. If I could just find a way.”
  — Leonard Purdy, 24:50

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Case reported/missing persons complaint: 00:49–03:00
• Discovery of blood in garage: 03:00–04:40
• Interview with Gordon Shane (husband): 05:06–10:13
• Handwriting analysis and blood test results: 15:11–16:18
• Bar scene, learning about Leonard Purdy: 17:08–19:33
• Locating and confronting Purdy: 21:04–22:36
• Purdy’s confession and desert search: 22:48–24:41
• Conviction and sentencing: 25:02–25:35

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Episode Tone & Style

True to Dragnet’s trademark style, dialogue is terse, factual, and tinged with dry wit. Joe Friday leads with directness and persistence, while the supporting cast adds emotional depth and tension—especially in scenes of confrontation or confession. The procedural drama unfolds with deliberate pacing, emphasizing logical deduction and methodical police work.

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For Listeners:
This episode demonstrates the patience, skill, and empathy required of police detectives while also underlining the tragic consequences of misdirected suspicion, addiction, and domestic strife in mid-century America.
Whether you’re a fan of classic radio drama or a student of crime fiction, “The Big Dig” offers a riveting, true-to-life procedural, revealing as much about human nature as it does about police work.

Transcript

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[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Welcome to Choice Classic Radio where we bring to you the greatest old time radio shows like us on Facebook. Subscribe to us on YouTube and thank you for [e-mail].

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Ladies and gentlemen, the story you're about to hear is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent. Dragmet, You're a detective sergeant. You're assigned a homicide detail. A woman reports her sister is missing. The story she gives you indicates foul play.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Your job, investigate. It was Tuesday, April 8th. Was warm in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch on a homicide division. My partner is Frank Smith. The boss is Captain Lorman. My name is Friday. I was on my way back from the business office and it was 11:46am when I got to room 42, homicide.

[Karen Moffat]

You know, it's just too bad you can't move them faster on things like this. It's just too bad.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yes, ma'. Am. Hi, Joe. Hi, Ms. Moffat. This is my partner, Sergeant Friday. Joe, this is Mrs. Moffat. How are you, ma'?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Am?

[Karen Moffat]

How do you do?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You want to tell him the story?

[Karen Moffat]

Think it'll do any good?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yes, ma'. Am.

[Karen Moffat]

Well, then my sister's gone.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yes, disappeared.

[Karen Moffat]

And I want you to find her.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

When'd you see her last?

[Karen Moffat]

A couple of weeks ago.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Could you give us a date?

[Karen Moffat]

You have a calendar?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yes, ma'. Am. Right on the wall there behind you.

[Karen Moffat]

Oh, this is 8th. Maggie's birthday was in March. And that naked 14th of March.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I see.

[Karen Moffat]

She come by to thank me for the party. Had a few of the girls in for her.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's your sister?

[Karen Moffat]

Yes, Margaret Shane.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Have you heard anything from her since then?

[Karen Moffat]

Not a peep.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What about her home? Have you checked there?

[Karen Moffat]

Tried to call her on the phone a couple of times. Didn't talk to her, though.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Who'd you speak with?

[Karen Moffat]

Her husband.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Did you ask him where your sister was?

[Karen Moffat]

Yes, I came right out with it. Didn't mince anything up.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What'd he have to say?

[Karen Moffat]

Well, then, just beat around. Didn't come out with a yay or no, just beat around.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How about the rest of her family?

[Karen Moffat]

Isn't any. I'm the only living relative she has.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Possible she's ill.

[Karen Moffat]

If that's so, I'd know about it. We were pretty close. Hardly no secrets from each other.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I see.

[Karen Moffat]

Now, if you're all done asking me the same questions this fellow has, I want to know. I know there's something wrong. I want you to find out.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

All right. We'll check on him.

[Karen Moffat]

I want you to do more than that. A lot more.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Beg pardon?

[Karen Moffat]

I want you to arrest Maggie's husband.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Well, why?

[Karen Moffat]

Because he killed her.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We checked the name and description of the woman through missing persons files, but we failed to find anything on her. While I talked to Karen Moffett, Frank went down the hall and ran the names Margaret Shane and her husband Gordon through R and I. There was nothing on either one of them. 1:06pm we left the office and drove out to check a missing woman's house. Doesn't seem like anybody's home. Well, let's check the bank. Fine. You think there's anything to it? You know as much as I do. We both started from the same place. Yeah. I'll get it. All right. There's somebody home. Yeah. Wonder why he didn't bark when we knocked on the door. There's nothing here. Let's check the garage. There. Lock? Nope. That's quite a shop, huh? A lot of tools. Doesn't look like anything. Nope. Breaks? Yeah. Come here. Right here. Under the sawdust. Where? Oh, yeah. Looks like somebody tried to hide it. Blood stains. We put in a call to the crime lab requesting that a crew be sent out to check the stains that we'd found on the floor. We talked to the neighbors about the couple and we got the address of the place where Mr. Shane was employed. It was a large wholesale carpet company. We found Shane in one of the offices.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

That's right. No, ma'. Am. If it's put in, it should make the room a lot warmer. No, the carpet you've chosen shouldn't show anywhere for years. Well, we found that color doesn't show the dirt.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

No, ma'. Am.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, it'll increase the value of your home. That's right. Oh, we can have it in for you day after tomorrow. That's right. I'll give you a call. All right. Bye.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yes, sir.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Can I do something for you?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Mr. Shane?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

That's right. You and Quint. What can I do for you?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Police officers. Frank Smith. My name's Friday.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

How do you do, sir? Something wrong? No, sir.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Just a couple of questions we'd like to ask. Oh, sure.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You want to sit Down.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Thank you.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Cigarette?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yeah, thanks. How about you, Mr. Smith? Yes, thanks.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Sir, would like.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I've got it where you are. Thanks. Thanks.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Now then, what's this all about?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You know where your wife is, Mr. Shane?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Oh, there's something about Maggie.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Well, do you know where she is?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Look, Mr. Friday, if there's something wrong with Maggie, I got the right to know about it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yes, sir, that's true. We're not sure there's anything wrong. We'd like to talk to Mrs. Shane. We hope you tell us where we might reach her.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Was she in trouble?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

No, sir.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, then I don't understand all the questions.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We've got a report that she's missing. Who filed it? Her sister.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

That figures.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How's that?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

She is never gonna stop.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I don't believe I follow you.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Karen's been hacked at me ever since I married Maggie. Now the day goes by she doesn't plan some kind of a dig.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

She have a reason?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, she had it all fixed for Maggie to marry someone else. I came along and upset her plans. Been trying to break us up ever since.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's so.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah. This fella she was trying to palm off on my wife. Karen's husband worked for him. She figured it'd be real soft having the boss as a brother in law.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Well, the way it worked out, the.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Slob had to work for a living. Almost kills Karen every time she thinks of it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Where is your wife?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I wish I could tell you.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I wish I knew where she was.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Haven't you got any idea? No.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

A couple of weeks ago, I came home from work, Maggie was gone. I haven't seen her since.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Can you pin it down?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Thursday a week. She called during the day to tell me she wanted me to go out to dinner. Said she wanted me to be home on time. I told her I wouldn't be able to make it. We had words, she hung up. When I got to the house, she was gone.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Did you leave any kind of a note?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Have you got it?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I don't think so. I was pretty upset. Guess I must have thrown it away. Haven't seen her around since.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You know, you've got quite a woodworking shop in your garage.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah. Yeah, stuff's getting a little rusty now. I haven't felt like doing anything.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

This trouble with your wife. Was there another man involved? Be hard to say. What do you mean?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, Maggie's an attractive girl. Everywhere she went, there was some guy trying to make time. Might have been someone special. I wouldn't know.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Wonder if we could use one of the phones outside.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Use this if you like.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Well, one of the others will do.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Sure, go ahead.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I'll call a laptop, see what they've come up with. Okay. This note your wife left. Wouldn't say you mean the exact words if you remember them.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It was pretty simple. Just that she was leaving me. Said she didn't have to tell me why, That I knew.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Did she say where she was going? No.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Figured maybe she went back east. She's got some friends there. Where? Nebraska, I think. I've never met him.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How about clothes?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

What?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Did she take any clothes with her?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Oh, yeah, I guess so. She had quite a few. I looked at her closet. I couldn't tell what was gone. She took her fur coats up.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Did you try to contact any of her friends?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I called around. I didn't find out anything. Whole thing's a farce. Sergeant. Isn't anything new about a wife leaving her husband? Read about it all the time in the papers. Karen's just stirring up trouble. She's sore at me. Always has been, always will be. Joe.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yeah? Excuse me.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, sure.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Did you talk to the lab? Yeah, I just finished the test on the blood stains. Mm. We're not too far off, huh? Human blood. Frank and I took Gordon Sheen back to his house. During the ride, he was quiet, and he refused to be let into a conversation about his wife. When we arrived at the house, we took him back to the garage. The crew from the crime lab had gone back to the office to make the grouping tests on the blood stains.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

We should tell me what this is all about.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We figure you might have the answer to that.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

When are you gonna stop talking in riddles?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Now, Shane, you know what we're after. You'll save yourself a lot of trouble if you go along with us.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I don't know. What are you after? You dragged me away from my job. Caused me a lot of embarrassment. Now, how about calling the game so we both know what we're playing? All right, fine.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Sure. You got an explanation for this? What? The blood stains here on the floor?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, sure. I killed a couple of people. This is where I did it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We don't need any jokes, Shane. Just figure it out.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, you better turn in your deerstalker cap. I made those stains myself. Yeah, I was working on the lathe. Chisel slipped out of my hand, cut my foot.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

When this happened?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

A couple of weeks ago.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Before or after your wife left?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Now you're ready to stop the game?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

It's a real easy question, Shane. Give us the answer. The same way, will you? Before how much?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

A couple of days.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You told us your wife left on the 27th of March. Is that right?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, I guess so.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Is it right or isn't it?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It's right.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

It's right. And when did you cut your foot?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

The Sunday before.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How'd you pull that date up?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, no trouble. It's the last time I worked out here.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Oh, well, to cut that bad, still be a mark, wouldn't it? Yeah. You mind showing us?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Not at all.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You know your blood type? Mm. What's your blood type?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Oh.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How about your wife's?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I don't know. Somehow we never quite got around to talking about it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

All right, let's go in the house. You can show us your foot there.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, sure.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You think you might be able to come up with a note your wife left as well?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, look.

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[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You know much about the law?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What do you mean?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

If I get out of this, can I bring suit against my sister in law? What's that? Well, it seems there should be something I can do to close her mouth. All the time Maggie and me were together, she was causing trouble. Like to really fix her good.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's a civil matter. You better see your lawyer about that. Wait a minute.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I'll get the door. We can talk in the living room.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Where?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Living room.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You want to go ahead? Yeah, yeah.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

This is the living room. You can sit on any place.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

All right.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

A little messy. I haven't spent a lot of time here since she left. Just toss those things on the floor.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Don't worry about it. You want to see if you can find that note now?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, I think maybe it's in the desk. I'll get it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Wait a minute. I'll have a look first.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You guys don't trust anybody, do you?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's the way it's going to be. You got to go with it. All right. All right.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Better make sure I haven't got a machine gun hidden in there.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You know, you've done pretty good up to here, Shane. Don't press your luck.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, go ahead, tear the place up. Too bad I haven't got a wall bed. You could look for her in there.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Doesn't seem to make any difference to you that your wife left at all.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It's the way it looks. Yeah, well, you ain't far off. Real load off my back. We've been married over four years. And all that time I haven't had a minute's rest. Thinking how she was gonna run off with somebody else. Figured that she'd drop me. Now it's over. I don't have to worry anymore.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You got it wrong, Shane. That right? Yeah.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Take a look, Joe. What do you got there? You got no right to go through my personal things.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

When did you see your wife last?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I'm not gonna say anything more. You're trying to lead me into something.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Looks like you found your own way. Now, how about it?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I'm not gonna talk anymore, all right?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You call any way you want. No matter how it turns out, you're gonna carry the load.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

All right? She left on the 27th of.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's the last time you saw her? Yeah. Have you heard anything from her since then? I hope you got an answer for these.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

What do you got?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

A couple of checks made out to you. And they're signed by your wife. Well, what's that prove? The dates and the checks make a liar out of you, Shane, huh? They were written a week after she left you. We made a search of the house, but we failed to turn up anything more that would tie Gordon Shane in with his wife's disappearance. We looked through the desk and we found several letters that she'd written. These were taken for handwriting comparison. We also found several pictures of the missing woman. A check with the neighbors failed to give us anything further to work on. All of them told us of constant fights between Shane and his wife. One of the people said that on several occasions the sound of sobbing had been heard coming from the house. At 5:20pm Frank and I left the place and took Shane down to the city hall. The checks and samples of Mrs. Shane's writing were turned over to Larry Sloan for comparison. We put in a call to the crime lab, but we found that the blood grouping tests were not finished. 6:12. We took the suspect to the interrogation room. Just sit down over there, Shane.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Okay. How long you think you're gonna be able to hold me?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Depends on when we get the truth.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, you saw the cut on my foot. You didn't find anything at the house? Look, you're grabbing at shadows.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You still haven't told us about the checks.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

No reason to. Everything I say, you twist around so it ends up something I Don't mean.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Where'D you get the checks?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

From Maggie.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What about the date on them?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I don't know. I guess she made a mistake when they were written.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Where'd you get them? Found him at the desk. Well, didn't you think it was kind of funny that your wife would write a couple of checks and just leave them laying around on a desk?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

No, Maggie was always doing something like that. She didn't care about money.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How about you, Shane? Huh? Make any difference to you?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Look, I'm getting tired of this. Some crazy old bag comes in here, tells you a fairy tale and you buy it all away. Any special reason why you're taking my sister in law's word for it?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

The way she tells us things to add up.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well then you better go over the column again. My wife walked out on me. There wasn't any fight when it happened, she just picked up and she left. I don't know where she is. I don't much care. You put this down in your book. I didn't kill her. Now look, leave me alone. When do I get to call a lawyer?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We'll set it up for you.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, do it fast. Cause you're getting nothing more from me.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's the way you want.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It wasn't any other way. I'm telling you the truth and you don't believe it. Might as well keep my mouth shut so you can't make it any worse.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

All right, Gordon, we'll take you over to the main jail. You can call your lawyer from there.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

What are you holding me on?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Suspicion of murder.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You just don't give up, do you?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Look, we got to go along with the evidence.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, you better check it again because you're making a mistake somewhere along the line.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

That's the way it looks to you, does it?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah. Go over the road again, find that you're a cop.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

No, let's do it the easy way, huh? You point it out. The suspect was removed to the main jail and held for further investigation. Frank checked the office and I went down the hall to talk to Larry Sloan and handwriting.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Joe, how's it going?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You all throw those checks? Larry?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Just wrapping it up.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

All right to wait?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Sure. Sit down.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Okay. What do you figure I don't want you to tell us? Mm.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

How'd it start?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Complaint woman wanted us to find her sister.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Where did the checks fit in?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Found them with the husband. Dates a couple of days after she disappeared.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Uh huh. Figure he might have written them, huh?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Well, that's one way.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

No, that doesn't.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Okay. What do you got?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

The endorsement on the back is Shane's writing.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

His signature? Yeah. Here.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You can see it. No trouble there. The O's wave, pulls the stroke down on the S. That's his.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What about the writing on the face?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, look here. Shading on the G. Yeah. Way the crossbar on the T's pulled up, these are the samples. And you got the same thing right here.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

No doubt about it, huh?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Not with me.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Okay.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Woman wrote the checks.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Joe? In here, Frank. Oh, just talked with Lee at the crime lab. Yeah? He finished the grouping test. What'd he find? Got in touch with Karen Moffat. Found out the missing woman's blood type. Yeah. Stains on the floor aren't hers. They belong to Shane.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

How you doing, Joe?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Not good. Looks like we got the wrong man in jail, doesn't it?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You are listening to Dragnet. The authentic story of your police force in action.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Frank and I left the office and went over to the main jail to see Gordon Shane. We talked to him for over an hour. He told us that he and his wife had been having trouble for quite a while and that they'd separated on several occasions. He went on to tell us that he didn't know for sure whether there was another man involved, but that he'd heard his wife spent a lot of time in a small bar on Vermont Avenue. He said that it was possible we could pick up some information on her there. Frank and I left the jail and drove over to the place. It was an average neighborhood tavern. We talked to the bartender.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Only one way to describe her. Man, oh, man.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Was there anybody special that Mrs. Shane spent a lot of time with? Would you know? Gee, I don't know.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

A lot of people in here like a family. Guess if you had to nail it down, it'd be Leonard.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Who's Leonard?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Another regular. He's here almost every afternoon.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

He and Mrs. Shane were pretty friendly, huh?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, real buddies. They used to come in and get gas together. Spend the whole afternoon, sit down there at the inn and play horse. Play it by the hour. Not for money. We don't allow that in here.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What do you know about him?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Not much. Doesn't figure him and Maggie would hit it off, though.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Why do you say that?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, just doesn't. She liked her fellows big, you know, dark and handsome. Leonard's a little guy. Not more than 5.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

4.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Sure ain't anything to look at.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What's his last name?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I think it's P, U, R, D, Y, Purdy. It seems like it's it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What's he look like?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Not much about him you'd remember. He's a little guy. Blonde hair, real bad complexion. Has a mustache, you know, big, kind of handlebar like.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yeah. You know where he lives?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Not for sure. I think he's got a room over on Fountain someplace.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I don't know the number. Where's your phone?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Through the back door there on the left.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I'll take it. Jim. Right. Does this Prud, he work for a living?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Not regular.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What's he do to.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You know, he's some kind of salesman.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Door to door.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I don't know what he peddled. Seen him a couple of times with a sample case.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Has he been around lately?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

No, hadn't thought about it. But I guess I haven't seen him in a couple of weeks.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You ever hear what he and Mrs. Shane talked about?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Word here, there nothing you could put together. I think she spent the time with him because she didn't have to worry about it.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How do you mean that?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Well, you know, a little guy like that couldn't give her no trouble. She's always around. Maggie didn't have a car, so Leonard would drive her if she wanted to go someplace.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What kind of a car?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

41 de Sota. Parked it out back a couple of times.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

It's a real wreck, all right. What'd she do, huh?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Maggie. What are you after her for?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Like I said, we'd like to talk to her.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Sure. Adult. You get to know her after that, doesn't matter how much money she spends, she can't switch you back.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

She spent quite a bit in here, did she?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah. Her and Leonard had really put the drinks away. Both of them had hollow legs, you know, I've seen some pretty heavy drinkers walk up against them. They don't stand a chance. Maggie can really put it away.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Always causes trouble, honey.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Me gets loud, yelling all over about how she could buy and sell everybody in a place. A couple of times I had asked her to get out. Things like that hurt business, you know.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

She carried a lot of money with her, did she?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Oh, yeah. I always had a bundle. Said she was an heiress or something. I don't know.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

She was always loaded, though. Anything unproty. Yeah, sure is. Yeah. Got out of the state mental hospital six months ago. From his package we found that Leonard Purdy had been arrested several times for suspicion of grand theft. However, he hadn't been convicted on any of them. Also, there were 18 drunk arrests against him. We put in a call to Georgia Street Psycho detail and we talked to Lieutenant Quinn. He remembered Purdy he went on to say that the suspect had been in to see him several times since his release. He told us that Purdy had committed himself to the state hospital as an alcoholic. Quinn went on to say that when Purdy was drunk, he became violent and that on three of his arrests, it had taken several officers to subdue him. We contacted the authorities up at Camarillo. They told us that the suspect had been released by them after treatment and that he apparently was cured. We checked the last address in his package, but we found that he'd moved a local and an APB was gotten out on him. We asked DMV to furnish any and all information on a car registered to him. Two days went by without a word of him. In the meantime, we talked to all of his friends and acquaintances. From each one of them, we got the same story. Leonard Purdy was a freeloader who'd do anything for a dollar. On Thursday, April 10, we got word that the suspect had been seen in a secondhand store down on Main Street. We checked the area and got an identification from his mugshot. He'd come in to pawn a man's watch from the buy book. We got an address out on Gladys Avenue. We talked to the landlady and found that the suspect was in his room. Frank and I went upstairs.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Who's that?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Huh? No. One talk.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Your party? Yes. Yeah. What do you want?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You Leonard Purdy?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

That's right. Who are you guys?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Police officers. Want to talk to you.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I got nothing to do with cops. I have them.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

A fella? Yeah.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Why don't you come in?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Right? Yeah.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Going to be here long?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Not long.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

That's good. I don't feel like making small talk. I'd offer you a drink, but there's just barely enough for me. You can understand.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Put the glass down, pretty.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

What?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Put it down.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Look, you got no right to come in here and tell me what to do. Nobody ask you.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Oh, Ms. McCloud. This fur coat belong to you? Purdy?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah. I get cold night.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You know a woman by the name of Margaret Shane?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Never heard of her.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Sure about that?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

I'm sure. I'm sure. I got nothing to answer to you for. You come in here, tell me what to do. I don't have to give you one single answer about nothing.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You better come up with one.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

What's that?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

This coat.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

What about it?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

It's got Margaret Shane's name in.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Must be a mistake. I don't know anybody named Shane. Nobody.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We got a lot of people who say you do.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

You Telling me the truth?

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Same people. Tell us you were with her when she disappeared.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

They don't know what they're talking about.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

The way they put it, it's pretty straight. Who told you? Who?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Just give me some names.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Everybody we talked to. They said I was with her. That's right. Now, where is she? I don't know. You gotta do better than that.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It's the truth. I don't know where she is. I killed her, but I don't know where she is.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

We took the suspect down to the city hall and questioned him. He finally sobered up enough to tell us that he'd gotten into an argument with the Shane woman and beaten her to death. He went on to say that his car was being repaired and that he'd rented one and driven it out into the desert. He buried the victim there. We showed him maps of the area, but he was unable to tell us where to find the body. He only knew that he put it in a culvert along the roadside. We got the name of the automobile rental agency and we called them. Their records gave us the date of the rental and the mileage the car had been driven. We put the suspect in our car and started out toward the Mojave Desert. As we drove, Purdy verified our route by dividing the total mileage in half and figuring the distance between his house and the office of the auto rental company. We had a vague idea of where to start looking. After we'd been driving for over two hours. We pulled to the side of the road. How's it look around here?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Yeah, it might be it. I think up the road a little way. Remember that big rock over there? Remember that? Pretty good.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

It's up ahead a little. All right. We drove for another 30 minutes and then Purdy directed us to pull off onto a dirt road. We drove another half a mile and we came to the end of the road. We can't go any further.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Don't have to, huh? I remember now. Let's get out of the car.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Just stay close to us. Purdy.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Right here. All right.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Which way?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Over here? Sure. Beautiful day.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Yeah.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It's different when you get out in the country.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Everything's got a different color. Come on, Purdy. Where is she?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Over there, behind the bushes.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

I'll go look.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Always been the big trouble.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

What's that?

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

Boozing it up. Every time I get a few drinks, I don't know what I'm doing. But after I got out of the hospital, I had it made. You know, I'd be able to stay away from it. First time I had trouble, I went back. I always went back.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

How about it? Yeah, she's there all the time.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

That's what caused the trouble. Wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me boozing it up.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

If I could just stay away from.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

It, I wouldn't have any problems. I want to give it up. If I could just find a way.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

You got one Now.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

The story you have just heard is true. The names were changed to protect the innocent. On August 14, trial was held in Department 98, Superior Court of the state of California in and for the county of Los Angeles. Leonard Iler Purdy pled guilty to murder in the second degree and received sentence as prescribed by law. Murder in the second degree is punishable by imprisonment for a period of from five years to life in the state penitentiary.

[Sergeant Joe Friday]

Dragnet the story of your police force.

[Gordon Shane / Narrator]

In action is a presentation of the United States armed Forces radio Service.