The San Francisco call., 1896-09-29
PORTLAND MURDER
MYSTERY CLEARED
The Assassin of Thomas
.Kennealey Was a
Woman.
-:
CRIME OF LONG AGO.
Story of. the Killing Told to
Detective Cody by an =.
Eyewitness.
SAW THE VICTIM STABBED.
Robbery the Motive for a Deed That
Baffled the Police for
Ten Years.
SAW THE. VICTIM STABBED.

. PORTLAND, Or, Sept. 2S.-A mystery
that had baffled several police administra-
tions here has at last been solved beyond
the peradventure of a doubt, owing to the
unremittiAg efforts of Chief of Police
Mimic and Detective A. ], Cody. To the
latter's ingenuity may be attributed the so
luton ofa criminal puzzle which has mysti-
. fed the police OF the Northwest for almost
ten years. 1t originated in the murder of
Thomas Kennealey in this city in Novem-
Der, 1896 His mutilated body was found
in the Willard ruins" or what now is the
basement of the Hotel Portland. The
only cIew the detectives had at that time,
was hat they found on Fourth street,
along which Kennealey's bleeding body
was carried prior to its being deposited in
the Willard ruins 1t was a new No.
hat, purchased from Gross Bros. in Ia
coma, Detective Simmons was sent there
in the vain hope of having the purchaser
identified by the firm.
Early on the morning of the 9th OF last
May a stranger attempted to strangle
Marie .Lelivre. French Whitechapel
.habitue, and Detective Cody was put on
the. case. John Cosgrove fell under his
suspicion. Cody had. been acquainted
with CosgroTe some years. ago, ana the
latter, not knowing that Cody was an
officer, easily fell into trap ingeniously
set for him. The detective represented to
Cosgrove that he was opt of work and the
suspect allowed him to share his bed for a
week in lodging-house on Fourth and
o Salmon streets. The detective so COM
pletely wormed himself into the suspected
strangler's confidence that he made an
e; unqualified confession to him of his
attempt upon. Marie Ielivre's life. Fre-
Quenty during that:week CosgroVe would
start from his sleep and placing his hands
before his eyes he would cry out, "Oh, my
God, drive that sight away from me-
Alter little careful Questioning, Cos
grove unhesltatingly admitted that the
vision troubling his sleep.wss the death of
Thomas Kennealey, of which he had been
an eyewitness. He then gave a detailed
account of tire atrocious crime to Detec-
tive Cody, the mostsalient points of which
'Cosgrove detailed to Police Stenographer
Dodson after his arrest for the straheling g
affair. Two women alleged TO have been
; directly concerned in this murder are liv-
ing here, but they cannot be convicted on
Cosgroye 'ssunsupported testimony.
Cosgrove stated that the hat found on
Fourth street on the morning following =
sthe murder was his. CosgroYe said that
when kennealey came from Tacoma he
had $4,000 on his person in a belt. He was
&, followed by Bulldog" Kelly, sometimes
known as king of Spades" Kennealey
registered at hotel in this city, and the
following morning, about l o'clock, he
&. called at Fourth-s street saloon. He had
the money in the belt around his waist.
WI bile there he went into a room with a
girl and she ordered some drinks. When
The barkeeper, Robert Dorner, entered
Kennealey did not.like his appearance for
o" Bob" was bad-looking man. KenneaIey
= at once returned to the barroom, in which
at. the time were Bulldog" Kelly, Fred
E Love and Cosgrove. Kelly tried to get
,kennealey out of the saloon with the in
lention OF robbing him. Another woman
:.and Dorner, having the same object in
view, knew that if "Bulldog" Kelly got
him outside of the place they would lose
their opportunity, SO they took Kelly into
their scheme, agreeing that they would
rob him in the house and divide the pro-
ceeds between them.
Kennealey was doped and taken up-
stairs. The woman and Dorner started to
search him, wEren he awoke. Dorner got
him by the throat and choked him. while
the woman stabbed him to death, as she
supposed, when they finished their work
ofrobbery. The. money was divided be-
tween Bulldog Kelly, the woman, Dor
ner and Love, and Cosgrove was given
hush money.
: Il witnessed the whole proceeding. /"
said Cosgrove in conclusion. II saw the
woman plunge the knife up to the hiIt
into the poof fellow several times and it
mdoe ne sHuodeF. 10 Tell the truth,
when Kennealey was dead, Love and [
were compelled to take him to the Willard
ruins We stood him upright, aud each
OF US threw one of his arms about our
necks, SO as TO make it appear as if we
were caring for a drunken man. On the
way my hat dropped to the sidewalk"
To ascertain the whereabouts of Kelly
and Love Chief Mimic was materially as
sisted by the Pinkertons, but the informa-
ton SO lar obtained is very unsatisfactory
Kelly met with a railroad accident be-
tween Spokane and MIssoula in 1893. from
which he died ina hospital in the latter
spIace Love is in some unknown peniten-
tiary under an assumed name, but the
search for him will not be abandoned.