The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1891-07-02
BOLD SWINDLERS
Succeed In Fleeing People in this
Vicinity Out o $4,000.
Detective John T. Norris Visits Canton in
Search of Evidence--Those Who Have
Lost by the 5windlers.

Detective John T. Norris, of SPRING
field, was in town this morning looking
up evidence in an extensive swindling
scheme that has been going on in Wayne,
Stark and surrounding counties recently.
According TO evidence that has been
brought to light gang OF sharpers have
been playing for high stakes in this vicin-
ity and in the region of Wooster and Orr
vile. There were several interested in
| the scheme but the ring leader was
Samuel Camp whose address was Mar
! shalville.
The mode of operation of the clique was
to represent themselves rs wealthy oiti-
2els with plenty of real estate and notes
and stocks and by putting up plausible
story they would purchase horses, bug
gies and other salable property and give
their notes for thirty and sixty days in
payment So successful were they that
they succeeded in purchasing in this man
ner about $4,000 worth by giving their
valueless paper in payment
They Central Ohio Buggy company gave
them buggies to the amount OF over $1,000
and others were caught for nearly as
large an amount. Developments showed
that the gang was regular pack
Of swindlers without a dollars worth
of this worlds goods that could be got at
by law,
Charles Matty, the horse dealer OF Canal
Fulton, sold the Arm several horses; Ed.
Meyers of this city, let them have horses
to the amount of $3.50. Luckily for Mr..
Meyers, however, he suspicioned that all
was not right, and he went to Wooster
and replevied his horses before they had
succeeded in disposing of them. He will
thereby come out all right.
When the plot began to unravel, and 1t
was seen that the parties had been OBJ
tanning goods under false pretenses, Camp,
the boss of the crowd, concluding that he
could be more useful elsewhere, he left
unceremoniously, and has not been seen
since. Detective Norris was out to see
MIR. Meyers this morning, and has
warrants for the arrest OF the swindlers
who will be captured and brought before
the courts to answer to the charge of OBJ
tanning property under false pretense.
The NEws.DEMocRAT last night had
nice exclusive story regarding the visit of
Detective John L. Norris TO this city and
the object of his visit. The following
special from Wooster will be of interest
here: John T. Norris, the Springfield de-
tective, this evening landed A. II. Fitger
of Apple Creek in Jail on the charge of
sending letters for the purp!ose of fraudu-
lently obtaining money. Fitzer and HIS
partner, Samuel Rehm, have been engag-
ed in selling bugRies and buying horses.
They swindled the Gallon Buggy company
out of 5000 worth OF buRgies. They also
represented themselves as being the own
ers Of farm and succeeded in buying
over forty head ofhorses at prices ranging
from 5000 TO $500, for which they gave
notes. Nearly month ago Rehm claim
ed to have been robbed by masked burg
lars of $4,000, which he had hid in an or
gan. The alleged robbery was followed
by an assignment.
The story of the robbery was not believ-
ed and Detective Norris was employed TO
work up the case. Bitzer and Rehm also
him to help them out. Norris
had man hide under platform at Apple
Greek depot while Fitzer told him how the
was worked and where the horses
and buggies were secre,ed. Fitzer tonight
promised Norris that he would make a
clean breast and tell where the money
and property could be found.