Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1893-03-15
CRIMINAL NEWS.
Arrested on the Charge of Murder--A
Bad RecOrd-Attempted
Assassination.

As announced in the New MEXICAN at
the time, Donaciano Lopez, well-known
citizen, was murdered near his home, Rosa,
San Juan county in Dec. last. It is now
related that at the time of the killing the
wife of Lopez reached his side before be
died, and he told her who had done the
deed, naming Jose Adam Espinosa, Paz
Lopez and one other person. The wife
of the murdered man came to Santa Fe
recently and imported this information to
District Attorney Twitchell, and he drew
warrants for the arrest of the three &C.
cused and sent them to San Juan county
returnable for examination before Justice
Berry of Aztec precinct. Espinosa and
Paz Lopez we're arrested few days since
in Pine River precinct and officers an
now out after the other accused party.
THE STEEL MURDER.
OF the murderer of Sam Steel, whose
trial opens at Las Cruces to-day before
Judge Seeds, a Deming CORES pondent
writes: ............-.
"John Roper, who murdered the boy
Sam Steel, at Las Cruces, last Thursday
is we'll known in this section, having
lived at Cooks Peak and other places in
the immediate vicinity for several years
past. When sober Roper is perfectly
respectable, but when under influence OF
drink is known a. "bad man, He is
not over 80 years of age. The general
opinion here is that he will hang. His
past record is not in his favor, and his
name has previously been connected with
several shooting ARRAYS"
Supt. DeMier, of the penitentiary, uncle
of young Steel, arrived from Las Cruces
this morning. He says "Roper" is the
prisoners name and that the tragedy was
the most cruel and unprovoked imagin-
able. Steel was shot in the left eye, the
bullet being of 3S-calibre. When arrested
Roper declared he never owned a 80
calibre weapon, hut a search of the camp
mess chest revealed such a gun. He had
evidently undertaken to hide it. The
weapon was identified by livery stable
keeper at Las Cruces as one he haG seen
in Roper's hands at the stable shortly be-
fore the shooting. 1t had five notches on
the handle and Roper had, in his drunken
Drag, Cdllcu dtueutiOu VI tuo uFoTy Hull
to these notches, the idea being that he
was bad man, and the notches repre-
sented the number of people he had
murdered with the weapon. Col. VIM
Breeder will defend Roper at the trial to-
day. Public sentiment is at high
tension and if the jury should acquit the
accused it need not surprise any one to
hear of lynching at Las Cruces.
CLOSE GALL.
This story comes from San Juan coun-
ty, not far from the Navajo reservation:
"Just as Charley De Luche rode up to
the eastern end of Wyhi mesa last We'd
nesday evening, three shots were fred at
him. He had his hat in his hand, when
the first shot was fired. The bullet went
through the rim an inch from the crown
The next morning, accompanied by his
brothers, Charley visited the spot where
the attempt was made to assassinate him
and large moccasin tracks were found in
the Coolidge csnal close to the new
bridge. The .would-be assassin waited
until young De- Luche was about thirty
PAGES from the brid ye before he fred the
first shot. Moccasin tracks we're discov.
cred in the arroyo, and the tracks of q
pony not far away" % sio {