The Big Sucker

Originally Aired: February 16, 1954

Dragnet #235, "The Big Sucker," Sergeant Joe Friday and Officer Frank Smith investigate a sophisticated diamond swindle operating in Los Angeles. When Harold Filson arrives at the Bunco Fugitive Detail office, he claims he's reporting the crime on behalf of an embarrassed friend who lost $10,000 in a confidence scheme. The story unfolds with a classic setup: a seedy-looking man approached the victim outside a bank, claiming to be a displaced person from Belgium who needed to secretly sell genuine diamonds because he lacked proper immigration papers. After a jeweler appraised the stones at $15,000 wholesale, the victim paid $10,000 for what he believed were legitimate diamonds, only to discover later that he'd received worthless zircons in a clever switch.

Friday quickly sees through Filson's deception, revealing that Filson himself is the victim, not some anonymous friend. The detectives begin their investigation by examining the fake stones and consulting jeweler Saul Maurice, who confirms the original diamonds were genuine and provides leads on craftsmen who might have cut the imitation zircons. As Friday and Smith pursue the con man working this lucrative scheme, they must track down a criminal exploiting victims' greed with precision timing and sleight of hand.

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