The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-07-18
SMOOTH CONFIDENCE MAN
WORKS ORIGINAL GRAFT.
PINkERTONs LOOK HIM UP
If Caught May Have to Answer to
Charge Of Murder as Well
as Minor Offenses.

superintendent of the st. Paud office
agency is in the city looking about
for as smooth a confidence man as has
visited this part of the country in
many a day. He has been engaged in
working homeseeker trains along the
line of the Great Northern with a new
graft to the detectives and has not
lost any money by it. Mr.. Villins is
working in the interest of the Ameri-
a Bankers association and every
thing points to his being pretty close
on the trail of the right man. It is
believed by Mr.. Villins that the fell
- low has cleaned up thousands of dol
liars by his operations during the time
the homeseeker trains have been in
:. operation, and it may be he is a MUIR
derer.
Getting on the train at some point
in North Dakota, the confidence man
soon found some pretense for "get-
ting acquainted with a prosperous
looking man on board who was bound
for the west to take up new land.
During the day he made it a point
to find out from where the homeseek-
er came and the bank he did business
with in his home town. Usually he &C.
companied the homeseeker as far as
Kalispell, or Spokane in some in
stances, and in each of these cities
accomplished his purpose and worked
the banks.
AS 500 as he had received the nee
essary information from the home
seeker he would get off the train at
one or the other of these points and
go to the telegraph office, where he
would send a telegram reading like
this:
c." Bank, -Minn.:
'Wire me 5000 to the First National
bank. Spokane. Waive Identification"
To this telegram he would sign the
name of the homeseeker. The eastern
bank, or, as was usually the case, the
bank in Minnesota receiving the tele>
AAOAA II VAN SuoCOAASA, oSAC SAC
money to Spokane or to Kalispell, as
the case might be. Allowing time for
the money to arrive, the confidence
man would present himself to the
bank, claim to be the homeseeker and,
as the message waived Identification,
received the 5000. The graft was
worked at almost all Of the Spokane
banks and several in other places be-
tween that city and the coast, and
cnce at Kalispell.
The Bankers association took up
the matter and placed it in the hands
of the Pinkertons. The confidence
man was traced as far as Kalispell,
where he took a train a few days ago
and is believed to have come to Great
Falls. 1t is known by Mr.. Villins that
he was here, but he has probably
left and as to his further movements
Mr.. Villins declines to say.
1t may be that the man who has
been doing the work is the same who
enticed a homeseeker from the train,
east of %Sponkane, three weeks ago,
and the following day the homeseek-
er's body was found e the track
with pockets riled of about 81, 800.
While there is no direct evidence that
he is the same fellow, if he is caught
there may re than simply rob-
berry charged against him.
There has been a forger operating
in Great Falls recently and Mr.. Viii
Inns looked into his case. However,
he is convinced that he is not the
same fellow wanted by the American
Bankers association. In speaking of
the methods of the operator, Mr.. Viii
Inns says it is a long time since his
office has had a man with as new a
scheme as the case on which he is
working.