HERO COP'S 37-YEAR SEARCH
FOR ELVIS PRESLEY'S STOLEN PIPES
by Thomas M. Sipos, L.A. bureau
chief. [October 29, 2001]
[HollywoodInvestigator.com]
Retired Beverly Hills hero cop Robert E. Downey remains haunted by his
most mysterious unsolved mystery -- The Case Of The Missing Elvis Pipes!
That's shocking finding found
by The Investigator during an exclusive live
interview with the retired hero cop.
The mystery began in 1964,
when The King presented his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, with "a set of
seven hand- carved tobacco pipes in a padded presentation case," said Ret. Detective Downey.
Three months later, burglars
broke into Parker's Beverly Hills mansion on Maple Drive and stole the
pipes.
Although the pipes were small
potatoes when compared to Parker's total estimated loss of $5-10,000, they
were what Parker missed most.
Parker described the seven
pipes as having "walnut burl bowls, and being hand-carved in a distinct
manner." He did not say how the carvings were distinct. The
pipe case bore a brass presentation plate, but Parker did not describe
the exact wording.
Today, in 2001, the pipes
and presentation case remain missing. Downey believes they may have
ended up with some unknown private collector.
Downey was the detective
assigned to the Parker burglary, an episode he relates in his memoir: Beverly
Hills Detective -- a gripping behind-the-scenes police procedural
that reads like a true-life Dragnet!
During his 12 years on the
Beverly Hills force, Detective Downey investigated many celebrity cases
-- but none more heartrending -- or bizarre -- than the missing Elvis pipes!
In an August 2001 interview,
Downey said: "Those pipes were a special, personal gift from Elvis Presley to the
man he credited with bringing his music to the public. Elvis Presley's music
has brought so much joy into so many lives. It just breaks my heart
to think of those pipes in the hands of some slimeball private collector.
In a way, black market collectors are worse than burglars and fences, because
they're cowards who get others to do the dirty work, and take the risks,
for them.
"I want the public to know
the vast majority of cops are honest, hard- working men and women.
That's one reason I put so much sweat into writing Beverly
Hills Detective. But on top of that, if my book can help return
those Elvis pipes to their rightful owner, and bring justice to the creeps
who
stole it, then my labors will have been rewarded.
"I know from my 40 years
in law enforcement that crooked collectors like to brag about their loot.
They like to show it off. So somebody else out there has seen those
pipes -- probably not realizing he was looking at stolen property. Maybe
a lot of somebodys. It's my hope that sooner or later, one of them
will read about those pipes in my book, or maybe in the Investigator.
When that happens, I hope they'll do the right thing and turn in the creeps
who stole a part of Elvis Presley's legacy.
"Colonel Parker was a true
gentlemen, very considerate. Now that he's gone, I don't know who'd
be the rightful owners of those Elvis pipes. Who knows? They might
end up on display in Graceland. Then all of Elvis Presley's true fans can
enjoy those pipes, not just some black market collector hoarding those
pipes to himself. He may think he's an Elvis Presley fan, but in my book,
if you steal from someone, or buy their stolen goods, you're no fan."
* A Bizarre Twist
Soon after the burglary,
some of Colonel Parker's stolen property was recovered by the Santa Monica
PD -- but not the Elvis pipes!
Parker's stolen property
was found in cardboard boxes in a Santa Monica apartment, along with stolen
items from other burglaries. Harold David Brown, an Illinois man,
was later convicted of the burglaries. Brown said he last saw the
Elvis pipes and presentation case in one of the cardboard boxes.
However, the pipes and presentation
case were not reported to be found among the stolen items at Brown's Santa
Monica hideaway.
The fate of the stolen items
that were found is bizarre.
Said Downey: "Because the
items found in that Santa Monica apartment were stolen from Beverly Hills,
I was sent out to Santa Monica to help identify those goods. But
when I got to the Santa Monica police station, the officers in charge wouldn't
let me examine the stolen items up close. The SMPD made me, a fellow
cop, stand in the doorway! They said I had to I.D. the items from
there, not up close, because they had not finished 'inventorying' them.
"So from that doorway, I
identified a jewelry box that was stolen from a Mrs. Hallstrom. The
jewels were gone, but I told an SMPD officer that the box should contain
a secret compartment with a 3 carat diamond ring. The officer entered
the room, then blocked my view while he examined the box. He then
called back, saying he had found the secret compartment, but there was
no ring inside.
"'The burglar must have found
it,' he said, 'because it's empty now.' But then I saw this cop leave
the room with his fist closed, like he was holding something.
"It was strange. The
Santa Monica police in charge were uncooperative throughout the investigation.
They dragged their feet about providing the Beverly Hills PD with a final
inventory of stolen goods found at the apartment. They made it tough
for the victims to identify their own property.
"When I drove some of the
victims to Santa Monica to identify their property, the SMPD wanted them
to do it from the doorway too. Eventually, some of the victims had
to hire attorneys to get their own property back from the police department!
"I talked to Harold Brown's
girlfriend. She had had access to the cardboard boxes of stolen goods
in Brown's Santa Monica apartment. I was surprised to find that the
SMPD had given her the impression that she was not to talk to other police
departments.
It was like the SMPD wanted to keep all information about the stolen property
to itself.
"We know that Harold Brown
stole those pipes, and that some of his loot ended up in Santa Monica,
and was recovered by the SMPD. Brown said he last saw the pipes in
one of the cardboard boxes. His girlfriend said she'd never opened
any of the boxes. Myself and my partner believed the girlfriend.
"Whatever became of those
pipes? Who has them now?"
Although Downey's met many
celebrities during his 12 years on the BHPD, he dedicates Beverly
Hills Detective to Diana, his wife of 44 years.
Says Downey: "Cops' wives
put up with lots pain and sorrow, heartache and anxiety. They're
the real heroes, in my book. Without them and their support, we wouldn't
be able to do our jobs."
During his 40 years in law
enforcement
Downey has also worked for the Oakland PD, San Juan County Sheriff's Department
in Washington State, and the US Customs Service.
He and his wife currently
reside in Clearlake Oaks, California.
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YOU CAN
HELP RIGHT ELVIS'S LEGACY!
If you have information about
The King's stolen pipes or pipe case, please email us at editor at hollywoodinvestigator dot com, or contact the Investigator at PO Box 1903, Santa Monica, CA, 90406,
and we will pass your tips on to proper authorities. Requests for
strictest confidence respected. |
Copyright 2001 by HollywoodInvestigator.com
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