The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-04-06
PLUM KIDNAPPING
CASE MAY REVEAL
REAL PRINCIPALS
Police Believe Negro and His
Woman Companion Were
Professionals Tools.
JUDGE HOWELL HOLDS
EACH IN S., 900 BAIL
Judge Kruger Denies He En-.
plOyed Gregory, Who Insists
He Was First in Case.

William Freeman the negro butler
employed by former Judge Gottfried
Kruger. and Jennie Allen, his COM
panion, of 210 Court street, were held
in $1,000 bail each by Police Judge
Howell today. charged with attemrted
could furnish bail, and were locked up
to await the action of the grand jury.
The police now believe that other
men We're the brains of the attempt to
extort $500 from William T. Plum on
pain of having his S-year- son Willie
kidnapped and both he and his wife
blown up in their home. a searching
investigation is now being made by the
detective bureau, with the assistance
of Judge Kruger. There is a prob
ability that arrests will be made show
ing that Freeman was only the tool OF
men of infinitely more cunning.
Suspect Big BIscsmaiI Plot.
The police belieyc that Freeman's ar
rest will reveal an claborately devised
plot to procure large sums from Judge
Kruger.
Freeman this morning added 10 his
partial confession of last night While
he confesses having written the second
death threat letter received by William
r. Plum, he still stoutly maintains that
certain mysterious members of a '3lack
! Hand" band indicted the first letter,
which was received by Mrs. Plum,
mother of the boy, who was to have
been kidnapped.
Freeman said today
It'll admit wrote that second letter.
the one that came en- March 81, but |
had nothing to do with the first one !
do not know who wrote it nor did /
ever have any idea as to who might
have written Il. ! knew about it be-
cause | heard members of Judge Krue-
gers family talking about it. When the
scare seemed TO have blown over I
conceived the idea of writing a second
letter."
Neither Captain Carroll nor Judge
Krueger attached any importance to
Freeman's denial of authorship of the
first threatening letter. While there
had evidently been an attempt to dis
guise the handwriting in both letters
and make il appear different, it did not
require the eye of an expert to see
many marked points of similarity in the
two epistles. Freeman said he bought
the red ink with which he had indited
his notes in a little stationery store on
Court street near Halsey. Detective
Sergeant Tuite secured bottle of the
red fluid from the establishment and it
will be compared with that used in the
two letters. The proprietor of the shop
could not remember that a bottle of
red ink had been sold to a negro of
Freeman's description on the date men
toned in the negro's statement.
Denies Employing Gregory.
Former Judge Kruger was asked as
he was leaving police headquarters if
he had employed Frank Gregory, head
of the New Jersey Detective Agency,
on the case.
Il positively did not" said Judge
Kruger emphatieally.
Police Jealousy, says Gregory.
John Gregory was angry today
when informed by an EVENING STAR
reporter that Judge Kruger had said
he had not employed his detective
agency to ferret gu the writer's OF the
death threat letters.
81 cannot understand Judge Krue-
gers statement" he said. Il again
declare that my agency was employed
by Judge Krueger to discover the au-
thor of the death-threat letters.
1.-THE police are jealous of our work in
this matter, and l believe that is the
basis Of the yarns being circulated to-
day. My son and | solved the mystery
of the letter writer and Judge Kruger
knew of our suspicious regarding Free
man before the police knew of the eH-
1, .ence of the threatening letters re-
ceived by Mr. and Mrs. Plum
Captain Carroll of the detective
bureau, said today that the police had
charge of the investigation before
Gregorys agency knew anything about
the matter.
freeman has explained telephone
call which he sent to Detective Greg
ory's former home shortly before he
made the journey to the big elm in
front of the Presbyterian church by
saying that he wanted to tell Gregory
of the case to show him he. Freeman,
was making good'
1t is believed when Freeman chooses
to tell the whole story of the kidnap-
ping plot he can preeipitate a sensation
which will overshadow everything
which has been discovered in connec-
tion with the case.
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