The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-02-28
Another Italian Murdered Apparently
Without PrOy0catiOn.
HIS NAME IS VITO LAUISSO
His Assailants Fired Five Shots at Him.
Three Entering Ills Body-The Other
Two Marked tho Flesh Five Men
Have Been Arrested.

lishment on Willow street, and not
more than a block from the house
where the dead man boarded. The body
was frozen into the ice and the life
blood was coagulated in icy Jumps on
the clothing and the ground.
L.aulsso's body appeared before 1t was
stirred as If it had been riddled with
bullets. Articles found in the pockets
of the clothing We're an open faced
silver watch, a chain with a ring and
cheap charm attached, three raZors.
scissors, pocketbook containing two
pennies, letter. Il pipe and paper of
tobacco with a bullet hole through it.
Five men are now in the county Jail
awaiting the coroner's inquest, which
will be held at the arbitration room
in the court house tomorrow night.
Their names are Leonardo Rosa, Sal
vatori Cerminori, Pasqual Bevalaqua,
Joseph Fabiano and Joseph Rosa. The
latter was taken in charge at o'clock
last evening by County Detective
Thomas Leyshon and lodged in the
county jail. The others were arrested
early yesterday morning by the police
officers of Dunmore.
Indications point to Leonardo Rosa
as the murderer. but the proofs are as
yet only circumstantial, and the testi-
mony before the coroner's jury to-
morrow night may throw some light on
an otherwise mysterious murder.
They Called Lauisso Ont.
Vito Lausso, the murdered Italian,
was about 40 years old; his wife and
family reside in Italy, and he had been
little over three years in this coun-
try. He worked in No. l shaft of the
Pennsylvania Coal company. and for
two months prior to his death had
boarded with Leopold Nicotera, at 2ll
Willow street only stones throw
from st. Mary's Catholic church. Nico-
terra says that himself and Lauisso re-
tired to the same bed at 8 o'clock Tues
day night About an hour afterward
four men came to the door, which was
locked. as Nicoteras wife had also gone
to bed, and they raped loudly for ad-
mittance.
They said they wanted Lauisso, NicO-
terra got up and let the men in,
whom he recognized as Leonardo Rosa,
Pasqual Bevalaqua, SALVATORE Ger
minori and Joseph Fabiano. The three
latter had masquerade costumes on and
their faces We're covered, but Nicotera
knew them, recognizing them by their
voices. Rosa was not masked. They
urged Lauisso to get up and go out
witH them he did so, and as he owned
and could play guitar they requested
him to bring the instrument along. Lau
isso went out with them at 10 o'clock
and never returned. Mrs. Nicotera was
sleeping in the room off to the right
of the kitchen and she heard all that
went on. She sat up in bed, looked out
to the kitchen and saw Leonardo Rosa
take a revolver out of one pocket of
his coat and transfer it to the other.
Seeing the revolver and fearing trouble
she could not sleep for an hour or so,
and she says that about IL O'Clock the
men came back and stopped outside the
house. She was sure that Lauisso and
Rosa and one or two others were in the
crowd because she heard their voices.
They seemed to have angry words and
she listened, but could not distinguish
what they were saying. She told her
husband it might be better to get up
and let Lauisso in, as he would get
beaten He replied that there was no
danger.
Heard "a Shot Fired.
The men, however, walked off and
started up the street. She Immediately
composed herself and began to doze
off Not long afterward she was
startled by a pistol shot. She waited,
but heard no more. The first thing
she knew Of the murder was in the
morning when her husband, who had
learned the news on his way to work,
came back and told her Of it.
Mrs Nicotera was not aware of any
trouble existing between Lauisso and
Rosa, but she knows that they at one
time had some difficulty about money.
Joseph Rosa, a brother of Leonardo
Rosa, Keeps a small grocery store and
macaroni shop across the street from
Ncoteras house. Mrs. Nicotera says
that he came over to her house Tues
day afternoon and asked her why she
harbored such a man as Vito Lauiss0
in her house. He remarked on leaving
that he would like to have the last drops
Of Vito's blood. She called him back
and said that Vito was all right as far
as she knew. and anyhow he would be
with her only a short time, as he had
sent for his family to the old country.
Rosa told her that perhaps he might
need somebody to bury him before his
family arrived.
Vito Girardo runs a saloon at 252
Willow street. He was thinking about
closing his place on Tuesday night
4 ,,,t.
Pasqual Bevalaqua, Salvatore Cermi-
nori and Joseph Fabiano came in Lau-
| isso had guitar with him. All of
| the others had costumes on except
| Rosa. They appeared to be enjoying
| themselves and he invited them to have
| 81 drink. All but Lauisso were a little
under the influence of liquor.
Girardo Heard Shots.
They went out in little while and
| Girardo paid no heed to which way
they went. About twenty minutes af-
terward he heard five shots, but 1t did
not cost him a thought, as he was often
used to hearing the Italians use that
means of letting out some of the ex-
uberance of their half drunken joy.
Lauisso, before leaving the hotel, played
a tune on the guitar Nlcotera found
the guitar some time yesterday morn
ing thrown on heap of coal in the coal
shed.
The four men who We're with Lauisso
boarded together and slept in one small
stuffy room on separate i'll smelling
hunks in the house OF Joseph Carb. who
lives opposite Davitt's bottling works.
The alley divides the two properties.
The boarding house is not over seventy
five yards from where the body Of Lau-
isso was found. The other men under
arrest besides Rosa. in an interview
with County Detective Leyshon, allege
that they went to their boarding house