The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-30
Assistant Bookkeep De Car
dona Arrested for
Forgery.
A PRETTY SYSTEM OF FRAUD.
Very Silly, However, for Detection
Was Certain-His Wife Is
Frustrated.


head bookkeeper of the department., charg-
ing him with forgery.
De Cardona was taken from his desk in
the superintendent Office and placed in
the leckup in the same big building in
which he was serving and has been serving
for some years as trusted employee.
The charge is based on knowledge that
has come to the Superintendent and other
officials about the hall that the wages war;
rants of the Street Department have been
undergoing a systematic raising" in the
amount of their demand for some time
past.
The discovery was made in the course of
checking up the books of the different de-
artments-those of the Auditor and
Treasurer with those of the Street Depart
ment.
1t was found that the wages warrants for
the street employees were very much larger
on the Treasurer's books than they were
on those OF the Street Superintendent.
The Police Department was appealed to
and Captain Lees detailed Detective Cody
on the case and as result of an investiga-
ton extending over a week sufficient evil
dence was secured to warrant the arrest of
De Cardona, a young man of very quiet
disposition and hitherto supposedly ex-
emplary habits.
He entered the Street Department as
assistant bookkeeper with the preceding
Notwithstanding of Mr.. Ackerson.
He was so highly recommended as to
ability and trustworthiness that Ash
WORTH when he succeeded to the office,
allowed him to remain while displacing
many others of the old administration.
He is but % years of age, is married and
has one child. His wife was completely
Frustrated by the news of her husband s
arrest. They lived at 533 Hayes street
II SC i-yo TO- h ami
rants have been manipulated and the sum
may run away up. The heads of the de-
partments confess to having actual knowl-
edge only of three that got through the
treasury and one that was detected.
1t had been the intention of the officials
| to allow the matter to go along until the
extent of the work was better known, but
as whisperings began to be heard through
the City Hall that things were going
| wrong, and as the evidence in one case was
sufficiently strong, the warrant was issued
! as a precautionary measure against the
| flight of the bird and the Investigations
will now be pursued more openly and rap
| idly.
The method of the manipulation was very
simple The wages warrant that serves as
basis of the prosecution was one made
out to William Mckinley, laborer, for four
days work at 81 a days. The amount
| is written upon the face of the warrant in
letters as well as in figures. The word
''eight" is written well over to the end of
the line provided in the blank for it, the
end to the right. while the figure "S' was
also written to the right and some dis
| lance away from the dollar mark.
This warrant 1t appears was caShed to
| Mckinley before it went through the Gus
| tomary routine OF approval by the Finance
Committee of the Board of Supervisors and
the Auditor, for when it did so the word
twenty was written in in the same hand
writing in the proper place before the word
''eight," to make the warrant worth
| ''twenty-eight" dollars, the figure "2''
having been written in also before the
| figure 49," This warrant was discounted
| later by broker.
| for Schmidt only paid the So for which it
was really good, apparently suspecting
something wrong. The warrant had not
| got into the treasury before De Cardona
appeared and presented 500 to make good
| a discrepancy that had occurred with re-
| gard to it By mistake, he explained, and
with a request that nothing be said
about it,
Nothing was thought of this at the time,
but when the regular systematic checking
of the books little later revealed several
other discrepancies, notably in the case of
two warrants that on the Street Superin-
teadent's books called for 81 so each and on
the Treasurers and Auditors books rep
resented $57 80, that incident was recalled.
Then another warrant turned up that was
without any parentage at all in the wages
list.
1t was dummy warrant for $127. 1t
was true it was made out in the name of
one of the la5orers who was on the rolls
for 81, but another warrant in his name for
that amount was discovered. 1t is sup
posed that the dummy was made out In
ba Ia Ta
through the routine of approval without
having been shown to him at all, for he
claimed he had never received it, and on
the plea that it was lost another was made
out to him.
In his capacity of assistant bookkeeper
it has been the duty of De Cardona to
| make out the warrants for all the employees
of the Street Department The hand
writing of the inserted words and figures
being identical with that of the words and
figures proper to the warrants first directed
suspicion toward De Cardona.
Associating this fact with the incident
OF De Cardinals payment of the 500 to the
treasury and the request for secrecy
together with other suspicious circum-
| stances connected with the discounting of
the warrants, the officers felt warranted in
causing his arrest.
1t appeared quite evident to the officials
that the raised warrants had been made
out originally with the intent to perpe-
trate this fraud, room being left in which
to insert the necessary words and figures.
Captain Lees and the other officials are
confident that there are others connected
with the frauds. and are working to locate
them. The evidence piled mp in the hands
of the police is nearly convincing as against
De Cardona.
Six more charges will at least be made
against him, if not more. Detective Cody
last night gave the instances in detail,
which include several cases of direct for
gerry of the names used.
In March dummy" warrant in the
name of John Sullivan, hod-carrier, 81
Harrison street, for $75 for services rem
dered to the Street Department was paid
by the Treasurer. The signature of Super
intendent of Streets Ashworth to the war
rant is forged and 81 Harrison street is
warehouse.
In February dummy warrant in the
name of James Crowley. ia Valencia
street, 81 days work of team of horses at
SIS day, $105, was paid by the Treasurer.
Mr.. Ashworth's signature is forged, and
ia Valencia street is occupied as bakery
and dwelling by HI. Mans. This money
was obtained through Ferdinand Smith,
broker, Montgomery street, less discount
John Mcdonald. 3171z Day street, worked
q y