Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-10-18
PERPETRATORS OF THE CRIME
Found to be in the Illinois Peni tentia.
ry for Burglary.
HOW THE CASE WAS WORKED UP.
Full Deposition Of the Man to Whom
the Murderers Confessed.
INDICTMENTS AND REQUIsITIONs,
And st. Paul Officers Now Absent to
se-ure the Prisoners.

On the morning of the 18th of June,
1882, the citizens of st. Paul were
shocked by the report that the body of
murdered policeman had been found upon
st. Anthony hill, just in the rear of the
First M. E. Church. Investigation showed
that the murdered man was Daniel
OConnell He had gone off duty at g. m.
and while on the way home had been sum-
moned 5y Mrs. VIM. Bickel, in the absence
of her husband, to protect them from
burglars. O'Conneil promptly responded,
and after examining the premises fol-
lowed the trail out into the brush on the
brow Of the hill. That was the last that
was ever seen of O'Connell alive. A bullet
in his brain told Of the death messenger,
but by whom the fatal ehot was fred re-
mained a mystery.
Detectives took up the work of finding
the murderers, bat without avail. The
chamber of commerce and city author ities
looked after the family of tie murdered
officer and a residence was purchased for
them b. subscription. Legislation was
secured which enables the city to pay a
permanent pension to O'ConneIrs
family and here the matter rest
ed, without any apparent probability thai
the murderers would ever be brought to
justice. Some time since, as the GLOBE
has previously announced, the guilty par
ties were believed to have been found in
the Illinois penitentiary, and since then
efforts have been in progress to induce the
governor of Illinois to pardon
them, that they might be brought here for
trial for murder.
HOW IT WAS TRACED DOWN.
The history of the manner in which the
perpetrators of the crime were tracked
down forms as interesting chapter as
has ever been written in the annals of de-
tectiye work in this state or city.
Nearly year ago Detective Bresset fell
in with a river hand named Chas. Delos,
better known as ''the Dago," on account of
his mixed blood. Delos associated good
deal with colored men and he knew their
haunts, habits and methods better than
any man on the river. Being a steam
boat hand himself he frequently came to
st, Paul, and it was on one of these trips
that Bressett did him a kindness.
This Delos never forgot and IN return he
one day, in confidential mood let some
thing fall about the men who killed Po-
licemen O'Connell. Detective Bressett
took the pointer" and worked it for all it
was worth. He questioned ''the Dago"
closely, and after assurances that he would
be protected the latter decided to tell what
he had heard. He stated that
the man who killed OConnell
was named VIM. UnderhilI alias Nelson,
and that his accessory was coIored man
named Johnson, both men in fact being
colored. These men, he said, had made
some sort of an admission; on the night CT
the murder they started out with the in
tention of
COMMITTING BURGLARY.
and what followed is known. Bressett
brought his man to Hon. c. D.
O'Brien, who was nos at
that time mayor and together they took
hold OF the case. Dslos mentioned
another man who was CONVEX
SAINT with the story, and he also was looked
up. This man proved a most valuable
witness, as it was him that heard the story
direct from the principals and he related
what ne had heard 10 Delos. This man
goes by the name of Brown, and he is
known as "ths mystery"
He and Delos were brought before Chief
Clark and Mr.. O'Brien, but at first THE
mystery" refused to make statement;
then he was locked up, and after two or
three days OF ludiclous persuasion he
made clean breast of the whole story,
telling the names of the men and giving
-.
which led to the murder, the finding of the
body, etc.
After further skillful work on the part
of Mr.. O'Brien aud detective Bresett, I'm
derhill and Washington were traced to
Southern Illinois, where they were found
to have committed burglary and to have
been sentenced for seven years to the peni-
tentiary at Chester, in that state. They
were tried and sentenced before Jadge Ba-
ker, of Cairo. This of course required
weeks OF quiet, hard, diligent WORK and
ingenuity to accom- plish but the result was
soon ct hand.
The next step was tc
VERIFY THE STORY.
of ''the mystery" aad idsn tify the men.
For this purpose Detective Bressett and
''the Dago" and 'the mystery" paid a
visit to Chester last spring, and Underhill
was identified as the man who did the
shooting.
Arrangements were then made for re-
QUESTION which was obtained, and Mr.. Basil
Armstrong, private secretary to the mayor.
was sent to Springfield, Illinois, for the
purpose of obtaining requisition. Gov.
Hamilton of Illinois, however, could not
see his way clear to letting the men return
saying that he should like to examine
the testimony at the time of
their trial, and also the
statements of the two men who had made
the depositions. Here was another hitch,
but the obstacle was overcome and with
the delay Of several more weeks full copies
of both were furnished.
Judge Baker was also furnished a COPY
of the dispositions, and he gave it as his