Marvel Mystery Comics #70 (1946)

Walt Neilson breaks out of San Martine State Prison, determined to clear his name for a crime that he did not commit. Wounded in his escape, Walt steals some clothing and heads into the city to meet with the prosecutor in his case and convince him to give him a new trial. He is spotted by the Human Torch and Toro, who hear a scream from the prosecutor's house and witness Neilson running away. Going inside, they find that the prosecutor has been murdered and catch up with Walt. Walt explains that he was trying to get a new trial, but somebody had murdered the prosecutor before he arrived and it was his scream they heard from the house. The Torch and Toro sympathize with Neilson but have no choice but to turn him over to the police. With Neilson jailed, the two heroes witness Neilson's uncle and lawyer arrive. They recommend that Walt confess to his crimes and throw himself at the court's mercy. As this was their advice last time, when Neilson was accused of robbing a bank, his protests convince the Torch that there is truth to his story about a frame job and suspects Neilson's uncle and lawyer. Noting that Neilson's gunshot wound would have left a trail of blood at the crime scene the Torch and Toro return to the prosecutor's home. Hearing this, Neilson's uncle calls his gang and orders them to round up the heroes before they can blow the case wide open. When Torch's theory is confirmed, the two attempt to return to the police station and are confronted by a gang of hoods who easily overpower the two heroes and take them, prisoner. They are taken to cold storage down by the waterfront where they are doused with a fire retardant. There they are confronted by Neilson's uncle who admits that he was behind the bank robbery and that he had framed his nephew with the aid of the prosecutor. However, later the prosecutor began to succumb to his guilty conscious and the uncle had him murdered. The goons then lock the two heroes in the cold storage to freeze to death, however it causes the foam they are covered in to freeze and crack open allowing the two heroes to use their flame powers to escape. They then rush to the gangs hideout and round them up but Neilson's uncle manages to escape in a car. Chasing after him the Torch and Toro cause the uncle to get into a fatal car accident. With the gang rounded up and their leader dead, the Torch and Toro head back to the police station confident that they can clear Neilson's name.