Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-12-22
Bogus Deed Man Fails to Pull
Off Several Little Schemes
at Muscatine
HAD SEVERAL ALL PRIMEn
Grew Suspicious That He Was Watch,
ed and Made Hasty Departure Be.
fore Arrest Could Be Accomplished
His Plan of campaisn-Trap tc
Catch Him FaiIed-other State News
Special to 'rimes-Republlcan

Special to Times Republican.
Muscatne. Dec 22.-Because his own
schemes failed to work out as planned
and a trap laid for him refused to be
sprung one of the smoothest swindlers
in the country has just escaped from
this city after attempting unsuccess-
fully, to draw number of local peo-
pie into real estate deals that would
have resulted in his getting money
from local parties and some one being
out the amount that was carried away
by the smooth CRATER The deal was
nipped in the bud. however, by rea-
son of several local real estate men
succeeded in getting out of the city
before they were able to get him in
the tolls. His suspicious were arous-
ed by the mentioning of a similar deal
worked here some time ago, which
one of his intended victims inadvert-
emily spoke. OF while he was trying to
work deal to get possession of d
deed to her Property.
The man gave his name as Sam
Davis and stated on one occasion he
from Dakota, and to still another par
ty he claimed to be from Kansas. He
confined his operations to widows and
his method was briefly as follows:
He would approach a widow who
owned property and begin to negotiate
a deal to purchase the property. AL
most invariably the owner would have
deed made out thru some local
notary or real estate man and leave
the matter in the hands of local law
yers. This would end the deal as far
as the swindler was concerned. He
would give some excuse for delay and
begin to look further for property, al
ways stating that he would return and
pay the money and get the deed.
He spoke several times of borrow
ing money on the property he was go
ing to purchase and it was evidently
had no one to look after her interests
and get deed made out for her prop
erty on the pretense of buying and
then on some pretext, he would has
tily get possession of the deed and
with this in his possession he could
easily borrow money on the property.
This done he would disappear and
some one would be out. He secured
several abstracts but the deeds made
out by locol notaries We're never Civ
en- into his possession so he failed
to work the scheme.
plan to trap the smooth CRATER
was laid by several local real estate
men, who were shrewd enough to see
thru his plans and who did not de-
sire to arrest him until he had done
something that would enable them to
prosecute and properly punish him in
order to make an example to others.
But the recital of a similar scheme
which had been successfully worked
here put him on his guard and he did
not tarry long, having evidently be-
come suspicious of being watched.
The police have BEEN watching for
him for day but have failed to dis
cover him and it is thought that he
has left the city. He took with hir2
an abstract of the property owned by
Mrs. Mathews of East HILL but cam
not do anything with this unless he
FORCES note and gets a notary's seal
m St with