The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-04-18
IT LOOKS BLUE FOR ROSA
Damaging Evidence Given Against
Him by Two Witnesses.
WHAT ROSA TOLD DETECTIVE
Mrs. COrnoli0 NicOtern SwOrc She Saw
Rosa and the Murdered Man Struggling
and Soon Afterwnrd Heard Shots.
CommOnwcalthWillR Rest Today.

CommOnwcalthwillR Rest Today.
Evidence that makes the outlook dis
nal and dark for Leonardo Rosa, the
defendant now on trial for the homi-
eide of Vito Lauisso, was brought out
yesterday afternoon in the testimony
of the much heralded cellmate detec-
tive, who proved to be a German special
officer named Frank Agli, now living on
the South Side, and engaged aa a sleuth
by Chief of Police William r. Simpson
in hunting down Viswieski, the young
fugitive Polander who killed a fellow
countryman a few months ago on
Maple street, on the lower Flats. Mrs.
Cornelia Nicotera. with whom Lauisso
boarded when he was murdered, was
sworn in the morning and she gave
most damaging testimony against
Rosa.
County Surveyor A., b. Dunning, jr,,
was the first witness called by the COM
monwealth yesterday morning. He
draughted may of the premises where
Rosa boarded and Il prospectus of Will
low street, on which the body was
found from the point where the body
was found to where Willow and Chest
nut streets meet at right angles. This
brings in view of Vito Girardo's hotel.
VIII ere the men were drinking the night
before the murder, and also can be
poi,ted out the location of the house
where I.auisso boarded. Mr.. Dunning
swore to the accuracy of the maps, and
then District Attorney Jones offered
them in evidence.
Would Wet the Money with Blood.
Mary Corbo, the old woman whom
Interpreter Morisini could not properly
understand the day before, was called
and Joseph Cassesse was sworn to In
terpret her testimony. She said she
heard Rosa remark one day when
Lauisso passed by; "There goes man
who owes me $40, and If he does not
soon pay me, I'll wet the money with
his blood The day of the murder
she advised Rosa to skip out but he re-
fused, saying that he had no reason to
flee.
Mrs. Cornelia Nicotera, wife of Leo
poldo Nicotera was the next witness.
Her testimony was the most important
up to that point. She related all she
recollected about the visit of the four
men, including Rosa, to her house on
the night of February 26. AS her hus-
band has already sworn, they were in
bed and so was Lauisso upstairs. Her
husband got up and admitted Rosa,
Fabiano. Bevelaqua and Cerminore.
Rosa had a book under his arm that
contained instructions about how to
run q masquerade ball or carnival. The
book he threw on the table, and took
off his coat and threw that on the table,
too. Lauisso was asked to get up and
join in the revelry. He got up and they
began to dance; she tripped the light
fantastic with the others and after a
merry time spent in dancing and drink
ing beer the men left and LauiSso went
out with them and took his guitar
along.
Transferred His Revolver.
When Rosa was putting on his coat
the witness saw him take revolver
out of the inside pocket and transfer
it to the hip pocket of his coat. After
the men went out the Nicoteras re-
turned to bed and an hour afterward
the witness, according to her state
ments, saw the men outside and heard
them wrangling. She did not sleep well
and got up out of bed between / and 2
O'Clock in the morning. Not long after
she arose, noises up toward Girardo's
hotel attracted her attention and pretty
soon the voices approached nearer.
Finally the men halted in front of her
house and Rosa and Lauisso began to
quarrel. Another man, whom she could
not recognize, tried to make peace, and
Rosa looked to be choking Lauisso to
death They both carried Lauisso on
their arms up Willow street, and in a
few minutes she heard three or fuor
shots. She did not go out to see where
the shots came from, but the next
morning she saw the body lying on the
road.
When court resumed in the after
noon Cellmate Detective Frank Agli
was put upon the stand. He was
horn in Germany, but calls himself a
SwitZer; and he can speak the German,
Swiss. French and Italian languages.
He is bricklayer and stone mason by
trade, and when not engaged in running
criminals to the end of their tether he
Is a hard working man, he claims.
Fourteen or fifteen years ago he i'm
migrated to Brooklyn, New York, and
for the past five years of his stay in
that city, he was a deputy sheriff of
Queens county and assisted in this Kind
of work
His Work In Scrantt n
He has been in Scranton for over a
year and worked for Contractors Con-
rad Schroeder and julius Maier. He is
of very dark complexion. black hair and
strong black eyes. His features are
square and he has firm mouth, hidden
by a long sweeping mustache. He
grinned a good deal while telling his
story and annoyed, by so doing Judge
Ward. who twitted him caustically sew
eral times about blood money. Agll
told a straight story and was not shak-
en- one iota on cross-examination He
chewed with a vengeance on a large
quid of tobacco.