Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-24
PARK DEATH MYSTERY
Young Woman Found Dead in
Shelter House Identified.
POLICEMAN UNDER ARREST
Says He Was With Girl When Fatal
Shot Was Fired.
VICTIM USED HIS REVOLVER
Officer Shellard Of New York Force
Tells of His Acquaintance With
Barbara Re,g.
POLICEMAN UNDER ARREST
VICTIM USED HIS REVOLVER

NEW YORK, July 24-After main
tanning silence for two days Police
man David Shellard of the Hamburg
avenue station, Brooklyn. confessed
last night to Inspector Hussey and Capt.
Cary of the homicide bureau that he was
present in the shelter house In Irving
Square Park Hamburg avenue and Wier-
field street, early on Wednesday morning,
when q bullet was fired through the brain
of Miss Barbara Reig. thirty years old. Of
No $50 Maujer street, Williamsburg.
Shellard insisted that the girl had killed
herself with his revolver, and that he was
innocent.
Shellard was given hearing today ana
committed to Jail without bail.
Shellard gave as his reason for conceal
ment that he knew the girl: that he was
present when she killed herself. and that
he feared he would be suspected of having
done the shooting. He had known her
since December. and refrained from iden-
tifying her on account of possible trouble
that might come to him as policeman.
He was arrested on a charge OF homicide
after being subjected to severe third
degree" on the part of the police. and
after being stripped of his uniform was
locked up in the Hamburg avenue station
Mother Identifies Body.
Miss Reig was Unidentified by her mother,
Mrs. Eva Reig. and her brother Daniel.
with whom she lived. Her mother said
she left her home on Tuesday night. say
ing she was going to visit girl with
whom she worked. 1t rained on Tuesday
night. and when she did not return the
family thought she had stayed at her
friends rather than spoil her clothing by
coming home in the rain 1t was believed
that she would go from her girl friend s
house to her place of employment with
sackett & Wilhelm. photographers, at
Hamburg avenue and Grand street.
When she did not return home on
Wednesday night her relatives became
| uneasy. They anxiously awaited her
homecoming, but she did not return. On
noticed that the description of the girl
who was found dead with a bullet through
her brain In the shelter house in Irving
Square Park Tailed with that of Bar
bara.
Mrs. Reig and her son made their way
to the Hamburg avenue station. When
they reported the girl missing Capt. Wor-
nell took them into his Office and showed
them green parasol which the girl had
carried.
Yes. that is the parasol Barbara had"
cried out Mrs. Reis. I'm sure she Is
dead.''
Sne was tnen taken 10 the hInSS COuH-
ty morgue, where a positive Identification
was made by both mother and son. Fol-
lowing the identification part of the mys-
terry surrounding the case was quickly
cleared.
Woman Was Engaged.
Mrs. Reig and her son told the police
that the girl was engaged to be married
to Arthur Hack, a truckman of Maiden
lane, Maspeth, L. l.. who has place OF
business at Grand and Waterbury streets.
They said that SO far as they knew she
had no reason for ending her life. and
appeared to them to be perfectly happy.
Another daughter, Mrs. Mary Thomp-
son. said her sister was acquainted with
several policemen. and had told her one of
the policemen attached to the Hamburg
avenue station had bothered her for some
her this policeman wanted her to elope
and that she refused. as she had learned
that he was married and had one child.
In April, about Easter, Mrs. Thompson
tai card which Barbara said was from
this man, and which was signed Dave"
This gave to the police a new lead, and
Shellard was quickly summoned to ap-
pear before Inspector Hussey. He left
the Hamburg avenue station about thirty
minutes after 3 o'clock, and for two
hours was subjected to close questioning.
Shellard at first stuck to the story he
told Immediately after the shooting. He
said he was on post short distance from
the park when he heard a comrade rap
for help. He ran up. he said. and found
Policeman Rudolph Kahler beating about
the bushes.
II heard a shot, he said Kahler said
Il didn't. but l heard you rap, Shell
lard says he answered.
Both searched until they found the door
to the shelter house in the park open
They went inside. Shellard said he found
q h. all wi Hrr1t
said the place was not lighted and that
the switch was not found until he struck
a match. This was the first discrepancy
in Shellard's story. Inspector Hussey and
Capt. Cary about this time began to sus-
pect that Shellard was not telling all he
knew concerning the case.
Confession Of Shellard.
Now. here" said Capt Cary. II want
you to tell the truth. You know more of
this case than you have told u.s.
AS a matter of fact said Hussey.
you are the man suspected Of the crime,
and you would better tell us all you know.
| warn you. however. Of your rights as
anything you say will be used against
YOU"
Shellard then confessed that he was
present when the shooting occurred but
under the hardest questioning maintained
that the woman had taken his revolver
from a bench where he had placed it with
his stick, and had killed herself as he was
putting on his coat. Following is the
story told by Shellard as repeated by In
spector Hussey:
I'll tell the truth. At ten minutes
after one o'clock Wednesday morning I
met Barbara Reig at Hamburg avenue
and Halsey street. near the entrance to
the park. We stood chatting for several
minutes. and 1t began to rain. / had no
raincoat and she only light green para
sol. She told me she had been looking for
me for two hours, and had been on sew
eral posts. She said she merely wanted
to talk to me.
LAS we were talking about general SUBJ
jects 1t began to rain hard. and thought
we had better go into the shelter house in
the park. for which have had a key for
four months. We walked through the
park to the shelter house. and let her In.
When we got inside I took of my coat
and hat and placed my stick and revolver
on a bench beside US. and after placing a
paper over the tool box we sat down and
resumed our chat.
She told me she loved me. She had
told me this before. but told her not to
be foolish. as l was married and could be
nothing more than friend to her. light
ed an electric light, but she said some one
might see us, and asked me to put it out
We sat there talking until O'clock
and 7 knew would he relieved in a fou,