The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-03-30
NIPPED IN The BUD
Chief Murphy Captures a
Gang of Expert Swim
oilers in this City.
HAD CAUGHT ONE c
The Rascals Had Many Forged
Checks, Bogus Notes and
Spurious Railroad Bonds.
HAD CAUGHT ONE c T

An extensive swindling game, in which
banks, banking houses and business men
We're to have been yictimized was dis
closed in Justice Potts court this morn
ing by the arrangement of William II.
Hazard of Brooklyn and William +.
Monks of No. 157 Mercer street, this city.
The prisoners are supposed to be the
~ringleaders of as daring a gang Of
swindlers as ever attempted to operate
in this city.
Their arrest, it is believed, is most
timely and has possibly saved many per-
sons from being done up for a goodly
sum of cash.
The capture of the men is the out
come of a business transaction which
CHANGED to come. to Chief Murphy's at
tention.
Two weeks ago Frederick Schultz. q
butcher. whose home is at No. 43 Wayne
street, sold his business. which was
located at No. 75S Grand street. to men
representing themselves to be James
Monk and William j. Fairbank.
The sales price was slS5. Monk, who
seemed to be the head man of the new
firm, gave in payment a note numerous
ly endorsed. Schultz did not like the
note business very much and said he
would much rather have money. It was
readily explained that the note was as
good as cash, as he could get it dis
counted without difficulty. However, if
he wanted more security, of course he
could nave it. Schultz was still in
decided and to clinch the bargain Monk
vent down in his pocket and generously
gave the suspicious Schultz what pur-
ported to be a bono of $1,000 of the
| Canada, Chicago and Michigan Railroad.
Through a friend of Schuitz's Chief
Murphy learned of the transaction and
sent for Schultz. The railroad bond was
examined and the Chief at once recog-
nized it as the counterpart of an issue
with which men had swindled a wealthy
merchant of this city several months
ago. Without saying a word to Schultz
the Chief assigned Detectives Doyle,
DaltonI Pearson n Douglass to the
case.
Their first move was to find out who
were. James Monk turned out to be
William Monk. and Fairchild it devel-
oped was William Hazzard. The latter
proved an interesting character. 1t was
found that he is now under $500 bail
in New York for swindling Michael
Hanlmerdig, a jeweler of Maiden Lane,
out of S1S5 by means of a bogus check
drawn on the Hampstead Bank of Long
Island. Monk has not much OF a police
record. He was at one time proprietor
of a hotel in Ozone Park, Long Island.
The movements of the men were
watched and their transactions traced,
shortly after midnight on Saturday they
were captured in Grand street. Waher
searched at Police Headquarters both
men had blank checks of New York and
Brooklyn banks and each held several
thirty and sixty notes, the suretfeS
of which had since been ascertained to
have no existence. In his inside pocket
Hazard had h was supposed to be
a certificate of 1000 S. shares of the Elk
celsior Copper Company of New York,
Tucked way in his inside. vest pocket
was a telegram which notified him thai
a check bearing his signature had beer
received at the Hampstead, Long Island,
Bank, and that it was no good. Chief
Murphy says he believes that the pris-
oners are only a part of a gang dis
tributed in New York and Brooklyn,
who are fleeing s'easy' people with
forged paper. spurious stocks Int bogus
and worthless checks.
Two of the local banks have already
been windled by the gang to the tune
of several hundred dollars. The CHIEF
believes that in the course of a few days
complaints will pour in from all sides
While the men were in charge Of
Schultz's shop the detectives saw large
quantities of tea delivered there an6
mysteriously removed in short order
Forged checks, it is believed. were USED
in the purchase of the tea. From infor.
nation, which the Chief Is withholding
for reasons best known to himself, ht
says he will be able to show that tht
gang proposed making this city The sea-
of their operations. Both prisoners ars
slick looking customers and both Fefuss
to talk. The Chief anticipates sensa,
tional developments when their victims
begin to crop up. They are held with,
out bail pending a further investigation.