The Evening Star (December 15, 1945)
FBI man in Army smashes Manila car theft ring
MANILA (AP) – A Federal Bureau of Investigation operative on military leave today smashed Manila’s biggest auto theft ring and recovered a dozen staff cars stolen from the U.S. Army.
The FBI man, Master Sgt. Harry J. Painter of Parsons, West Virginia, picked up the trail when military police discovered a Filipino civilian driving a sedan that had originally been painted olive drab.
Police said arrest orders were issued for five American soldiers, now or formerly connected with the Army headquarters motor pool – two of whom were already en route home aboard transports.
Solving crimes is no novelty to Sgt. Painter. Although serving in combat he found time during his 14 months overseas to round up Japanese stragglers and saboteurs, and last June sent 14 American enlisted men and one officer to jail for five to seven years for black marketing.