The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-05-20
HAD BOGUSSEAL OF US. COURT
IOiR ARRESTS FOR SELLING
tORGED CITIZENS PAPERS.
.ccrei service Men. However. FAN to Find
Imitation Seal--Piant In HObOken
Hsldcd and Lots OF Certificates Found
Wen Worked In Fe,iera, BuildinE.

The discovery that an almost perfect
imitation Of the regular naturalization GER
rifcae issued in the Federal Building and
hearing a good imitation Of the seal OF the
United States District Court was being sold
in this cttyto Italians recently arrived, was
made hy accident on Feb. 20, last, when
Antonio Mi!ando of 800 East 10th street
called at the Office Of United States Com
missioner Ale xander to take out his first
papers and presented Giuseppe Ferraro
If $50 East 18th street, as the witness which
the lsw requires in such cases.
Deputy United States Marshal Noon who
prdts himself ON being able to remember
faces, was very sure that Ferraro was never
MADE a citizen during his time, so he asked
MN when he got his papers.
why, got them right here on Feb. 49,
said Ferraro.
i 'hink not said Noon. and ne looked
Ferraro up in the records, but found no
entry of his name.
Fsrraro went home and got his papers.
They were bogus. but cleverly forged.
The authorities couldn't tell whether Fer
raro was a victim of swindlers or swindIer
himself but they arrested him on general
principles, and he has been in jail since
=
10 get his papers he was held up in the cor
ridor Of the Federal Building by an Italian
who made a note of his name, address and
the time he had been in the country. ana
after collecting s.. so from him, gave him his
naturalization papers.
paper used being the same as that used on
the genuine certificates, even down to the
coupon bond water mark. The writing
IN the certificate was poor but, legible.
The signature Of Commissioner Alexander
was good forgery except that the forger
The bogus seal was almost perfect
Secret Service Agent Flynn found that
several thousand of the certificates had
been made and that a great many had
been sold to victims right in the corridors
Of the Federal Building The swindlers:
il appeared, had held up hundreds OF
Italians who had come downtown TO take
out their first papers and had mace then,
full fledged citizens on the spot. lhey dl9
thriving business and were not interrupted
Of the forged papers: After that they
stopped working in the Federal Building,
but have sold hundreds Of the certificates
At other places.
The Secret Service men discovered that
the principal customers OF the swindlers
were newly arrived immigrants, who needed
their papers before they could get Jobs on
the subway Out OF several hundred
subway Italians who were forced TO snow
their papers, nearly so per cent were 'ouho
to have bogus papers.
Information obtained from them soor
led the agents to the men who we're dealing
in the forged certificates, but FOR several
weeks they delayed making arrests, as
they were DESTROYS OF getting the bogus
seal
Flynn and Agent Peeke, who had been
working with him, decided on Monday
that it WAS time to act and that night and
Yesterday they arrested Robert Bnnoro
and s s.y sB.g are 81 n hs
Bureau Iof bewers, Rocco Figliuolo Of 81?
Grand street And Gaetano CaGgiano OF III
Baxter street. Caggiano is said to be the
engraver who made the seal.
leader, and for weeks they followed him
everywhere in the hope that he would lead
them to the place where the certificates
were printed.
l, was Figliuolo. however. who finally
street sn s's H t 70 He did all Of the print
ing there and then took the certificates
10 Caparelh, who could write English and
who did the filing in Caparelh too; Waf
the man who operated in the Federal Build
Two men to whom he sold certificates there
The men paid S2.75 each for their certifi,
Gates, which is the regular price charged
by the Government.
Flynn and Peeke arrested Bunoro on
Monday night and then made raid on the
Hoboien plant. They captured a lot OF
certificates and the printing outfit, but
they didn't get the seal they wanted and
made. no prisoners. Bunoro's apartments
were searched for the seal, but it was not
found After the arrest of the other two
mon Yesterday afternoon, their apartments
were searched unsuccessfully for the seal
The prisoners were arraiGned before
Commissioner Shields late yesterday after
noon They declined to make any state
ments and waived examination. Bunoro
was held In SO 600 bail for the Grand jury
and the others in 5000 bail each
The men declined to admit that they knew
of the existence of such seal:
There is a special penalty for forging the
seal OF the United States District Court
The extreme penalty is five years in prison
and IS 600 fine, while the penalty for making
or handling bogus NATURALIZATION certif,
cafes is imprisonment for from three &c
five years.
A great deal OF confusion will follow the
calling in Of the forged certificates and the
holders OF them will have to go through
the regular process before they can bt
made real citizens. 1t will probably take
years to get all OF the forged certificates In
sccorf{ipg 10 tho Federal authorities.