The record-union., 1896-01-21
KOVALEV REWARD CLAIMS.
Given a Partial Hearing by the State
Board Of Examiners.
The Hearing VIII be Resumed This
Morning Conflicting State
ments We're Made.

ments Were Made
The State Board Of Examiners held
a meeting yesterday, Governor Budd,
Secretary of State Brown and Secretary
Markley being present.
The matter of the rewards for the
arrest Of Kovalev, the murderer of
Mr.. and Mrs. F. H. I. Weber, was the
first taken taken up. District Attorney
Ryan stated that the first that he knew
of the case was when Captain Lees
notified him that he had arrested a
Russian for the murder. He went down
and saw Petelon and others and got
from them information as to Kovalev's
guilt. He said that Captain Lees said
he got his information from Zakrewsf-
XII
The examination Of Kovalev's cloth
ing developed the fact that it was
what had belonged to Weber, and Mrs
Beesley, his daughter. identified them.
The District Attorney recapitulated the
circumstances brought out, the recog-
milton Of Kovarev by Jost. the finding
of the clothing in the barrel by Ham
ilton and its Identification as Kovalev's.
The arrest Of Kovalev was made by
Captain Lees entirely on information
furnished him in San francisco, but
Jost was the only one who could iden-
tify Kovalev as having been here on
the night of the murder, and Hamilton
sent samples of the clothes to the San
Francisco police in order to aid them.
They therefore both of them rendered
efficient aid in the conviction.
Secretary of State Brown raised the
point that the Attorney General had
ruled that officers could not secure
reward for making an arrest, and the
Governor said that his decision only
was with regard TO an officer making
an arrest in his own county and that
Captain Lees went out of his county
ir order to secure the conviction.
Captain Lees offered a typewriter
shorthand report of the statement of
Bennett, one Of the claimants to the
reward, made to him. He said that
Bennett came to him on the part of
Stevens and not for himself. Bennett
had no authority to represent Stevens,
and the latter was very indignant at
his action. Not single fact in his
statement afterwards proved true. He
had to look up Stevens, who was of
some use to him, but there was so much
feeling against Stevens among his
countrymen that he had to drop him.
The samples of Kovalev's clothes We're
sent down in connection with Shy
Red" and he did not receive proper
samples until after Kovalev's arrest.
He never believed that "Shy Red" or
the Sprout boys were guilty and said
so when the Sacramento police were
hunting for them. As they disagreed,
he telephoned to District Attorney
Ryan, who came down, and showed
him the evidence he had collected re-
garding Kovalev The clothes found
IL the barrel were brought down and
Weber's relatives also went down and
identified the clothes found on Kova-
lev. Stcherbakoff, who was killed at
San jose was disinterred and his
clothes were identified. He did not
know anything of Jost until he met
him in Sacramento after Kovalev,s ar
rest He had a clean case before ne
came here against Kovalev.
Bennett, who was present yesterday,
claimed to have made some state
ments to Captain Lees, which the lat
ter denied his having made, and they
had quite a heated discussion over the
matter.
H. G. Soule was BENEFITS attorney.
and c. H Dunn was attorney for Jost
and the folNner asked the Captain
what services he had performed in the
case. He answered that he caused the
arrests, collected evidence and brought
the witnesses here. Petelon knew more
about the matter than Bennett and Ste
vens did.
There was a long discussion, Captain
Lees explaining that he had begun
working on the case from the time of
the finding of Mrs. Weber's watch in
the City Prison at San Francisco He
detailed the clews he had gathered
and said that he made no use of Ben
nett's statement.
Detective Cody related how he had
been detailed on the case by Captain
Lees, found Stevens and took him to
the Captains Office, where he gave the
information that led to the arrest Of
Petelon. Kovalev and Zakrewsfki, and
the making out of case against Kova-
lev.
Messrs. Soule and Dunn asked many
questions of Captain Lees and he de-
MED many statements they attributed
to him, and also that he had told Mr..
Hamilton that he thought he was en-
titled to a share Of the reward. The
latter. he said, asked him if he did nor
think he was entitled to some compen-
sation for his work in the matter, and
he told him he thought he was-that
the county should pay him.
The further hearing of the matter
was postponed till 10 a. m. to-day