The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1900-10-12
sensation IN CHICAGO.
An Alleged Conspiracy to Defraud
Insurance Concerns Brought
to Light.
MARIE DEFEABACH WAS THE VICTIM.
She Appears 90 Have Lent Herself
20 the schcnc and Then 10 ha,.
Fallen n Victim 4" the othcs
Three Conspirators, Who Have
Decn Arrested.

Three COnspiratOrs, Who Have
Becn Arrested.
Chicago, Oct. with insurance
upon her life amounting to $4,000,
Marie Defenbach, aged %, died, Au.
gust 25, in boarding house on La
Sale avenue, under conditions which
the police believe indicate "A plot to
swindle an insurance company and
two insurance societies. if they do not
point to murder. Upon bench war;
rants, issued by Judge Gibbons, two
persons said to be implicated in the
case, DR.. August NJ. Unger and Frank
Ii. Smiley, detective, have been ar.
rested. A third person, who is al.
legged to be connected with the fraud.
and for whom warrant has been is
sued, is not yet under arrest 1t Is
said he is out Of the city.
Three Policies ON Tier Life.
When Miss Defenbach died there
were three policies on her life, agere.
eating $4,000. all of recent date. as
follows New York Life Insurance
Co., $4,000; Canadian Order Of For,
esters. $4,000; Knights and Ladies OIL
Honor. $4,000.
The alleged conspiracy has been in
vestigatcd with searching care 10y
private detective agency, by the AZ
torncys and detectives of the insur
ance companies. and lattcrly by the
states attorney himself
Arrests Decided Cpon.
Sunday. at meeting between
States Attorney Deneen and Assistant
Attorney General VIM. McEwen or
one side, and the attorneys represent
ing the insurance companies and de
tectivc agency, the case was discussed
and il was decided to cause the i'm
mediate arrest of the suspects. The
was concocted, and that Miss Defcn
bach was originally one of the quar-
tette of alleged conspirators. She hac
expected that her death was TO be
fcigned, and that another body was
to play the passive role of her corpse;
instead of that real death came te
her.
An ASouIAtn8 1cusus
Her death. at a boarding house or
La Sale avenue, was attended by tho
most horrible agony. Doctors Leon
ard and Schroeder. the latter repre-
scnting the Knights and Ladies O.
Honor. were called. They refused tc
issue certificate of death but tn,
coroner's jury. later, and after the
body had been embalmed, found
verde. of death from dysentery. The
next day the body was cremated anc
the ashes were scattered 10 the
winds.
Payment Of Policies Refused.
Without much delay proceedings
were begun to recover the value o.
the insurance policies Miss Defenbacl
had left. Owing to the unusual cir
cumstances surrounding her death
the hurried embalming of the body
followed the next day by cremation
payments of the policies were refused
and immediate steps were taken &c
trace the wonan's career during tho
last few months of her life.
A Peculiar Incident.
An unusual incident is connected
with the making of Miss Defcnbach's
will. On August 81 Miss Dcfcnbact
called at the Office of a lawyer in the
Unity building, named johnson. and
told him she wanted TO make her will
Some days earlier, il is stated, DR.
Unger had told this lawyer a woman
would call on him for this purpose
and she announced she had come IL
accordance with the appointment.
Terms Of the VIII.
She told Mr.. Johnson she wanted
to leave her property to Frank ii
Smiley, her afianced husband. and
then she went away. Two days after.
ward she returned, and Mr.. johnson
had the will ready. II provided, rs
she had instructed, that after her
debts were paid her property vas 10
go to Smiley. but she then wanted
another provision inserted.
Wanted 10 be Crcmatcd.
IT was that after her death her
body be crematcd. This somewhat
surprised Mr.. Johnson, as he could not
understand how a young and nand-
some woman would wish her body
burned after death, but he complied
with the request. lie was so struck
with the circumstance, however as
the cremation clause had not been N
the original instructions, that he
called i'm witnesses to the will from
adjoining Offices as a matter OF pro-
lection. Miss Defenbach then signed
and explained the document. Two
days later she was dead.
Detective Arrested.
Chicago, Oct. Of. Wayland Brown
assistant manager of the Mooney a.