The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1886-05-07

- HMtEMT
HuItgren, the K~andiyohi County Oftcial
Embezzlor, Makes a Full Confession In
Prison.
Willmar, Special April Ex-senator Rice
and County Attorney Quist returned this
morning from Saltwater with the confession
OF John Hultgren, ex.register of deeds OF
this county, who was sentenced last De-
cember to seven years imprisonment at
Saltwater for having robbed the county
treasury Of some So, 900 in August last.
The confession is sworn to, and was made
to the above parties and Hultgren's wife
in presence OF Warden Reed. He gives the
following details.
The outside vault door was open (un-
locked); the inside safe was locked. KNEW
the combination. / opened it by the COM
binatiOn. l had only some matches. 1t
was between IL and IL at night. / took
out all the money and the checks and post
office order money was in a cigar box and
in a round tin box. / took the train at
the depot and went to st. Johns, | carried
the money in my pockets all the way. l
walked from st. Johns to my home. | hid
the hard money not far from my home, at
the edge of a slough south Of my house un-
der some stones. | put the money into a
tin can and buried it in a hole about half
q mile west OF the house in the pasture;
then / went into the house and
went to bed. | went to town next morning
and attended to my business. On Sunday
a good many of my neighbors came to the
house and talked about the robbery. About
10 O'Clock that night / went to the hard
money and ounds some OF the money gone.
/ had putt in three places about twenty
five rods apart. / believe that the amount
taken from there was about $40 or $50,
mostly silver. / gathered up the money,
being scared with the thought that | was
detected, and dropped it loosely into the
well. | estimate this to be about $500,
EndAtly gold. | then went for the paper
money, and found it all except a small
package. ~hich was gone. estimate it at
about 81, 0O0. The ground looked as il it
had been dug out. I nes badly scared and
partially drunk. / went home and wanted
togo to bed, but could not. / weno put again
and then went back to the house Aha TO
bed. / dressed again and made up my
mind to skip. l went out to the prairie.
Here tore the money to pieces, and throw
ing it on the ground, tramped it down into
the siough-more than "a, 900. This was
on Monday. The night between Monday
and Tia esday | went further north, close to
the road to Buffalo lake, where l
lay down in a slough. Next morning |
went further north, about two miles south
OF the railroad track and laid down until
dark. Then l went home. Stayed home
until the next morning and then hitched
up, when the officer came. l destroyed the
money order, drafts and checks at the
same time l destroyed the paper mo ney. /
took up the money from the well while |
was out on bail and gave it to my wife.
This is all the money / have left. The
silver found in the lounge was my own
money. l never told my wife that the
gold and silver gave her was stolen money.
never had an accomplice. No one ever
knew anything about the robbery except
myself. / planned the theft about amonth
before. l took the combination from the
rack side OF the safe lock by putting a nail
into the bolt and obs serving to what figures
it turned. | took off the back plate first.
Mrs. Hultgren was completely Frustrated
when she heard the confession, having been
a staunch believer in her husbands inno-
cence. The news created a sensation here,
where the majority believed that he was a
victim OF circumstantial evidence.