The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-10
SMOOTH PENSION
 SW|NDLtR CAUGHT
Negro ]. K. Jordan At Lasi
 Convicted of Cffense
WORKED MANY SCHEMES
Operating In Montgomery, He Had Frequently Boasted That Pension Officials Could Not Catch
 Up With Him.

Special Federal Pension Examiner W. R. King returned to Birmingham from Montgomery last night feeling jubilant over the conviction of the negro J. K. Jordan, who was tried before United States Judge T. c. Jones on the charge of fiim-flamming ignorant negroes in re- 1 gard to pension claims Jordan is re- garded by the pension officials IS being the smoothest swindler they have ever had to deal with. The department has spent thousands of dollars in trying to convict him on various charges but until this trial were never able to bring posi- 1 tive proof
 Jordan has been carrying on his oper- ations for years, during which time he has swindled a great number of negroes The charge on which he was convicted was for representing himself as pension of iicer to Violet Riley, negro of Green ville and swindling her out of S200. Jordan, it appears, went to the negro woman and informed her that he could get a pension for her and her uncle, and that for each $l00 paid to him by her he would secure her pension for 5000. She thereupon paid him S2O0 to secure pen sion for herself and her uncle. | The pension never came and news of the transaction soon reached the ears of Special Examiner King, being followed 1 by the arrest of Jordan. Sufficient proof was gathered this time to cause a con vction, and Jordan will probably receive 1 the full limit of the penalty allowed, l which is three years in the penitentiary and a S10OO fine.
 Jordan's methods were very bold, but at the same time carired on in such ;l way that conviction was almost mpos- sible. He was formerly allowed to work up pension cases, but on account of his nefarous practices was disbarred by the | department number of years ago. He lived in Montgomery, where he put up as a lawyer and ran a small store on the 1 side.
 His plan was to spot negro with money, go after him and squeeze every cent out of him that he could. It made no difference whether the negro had a light to claim a pension or not, he made him think so, and always demanded money for making the application The negro applicant would call to see him again in few days and he would exact another payment in order to get the pen sion. This was kept up until all of the negro's money was gone
 If the negro was entitled to a pension Jordan would make out the papers and secure number of payments from the applicant, these sums ranging anywhere rom s25 to $500. His clients were mostly i ignorant negroes. and he played upon ] them easily. When a man had a pen sion coming, just before turning it over to him, Jordan would either get him drunk or dope him, then sell him some groceries and when the negro sobered up he would find that L1 had signed a note to Jordan for s75 to $50 for mer- chandise received.
 ! In one instance Jordan received a check for $500 from the pension department for one of his negro applicants. He had already collected several hundred dollars from the negro and when the check was received he told the negro that it was for $500. Then with the cooperation of white man he succeeded in getting the negro to treat everybody to drinks, the negro indorsed the check with his mark. the white man had it cashed and gave him $500. leaving a net profit of $500 for Jordan and him. Then the negro, while drunk, went to Jordan and paid him $50 for his fee in the case.
 News of this swindle reached the ears of the pension officers, and a strong effort was made to convict Jordan, but absolute proof could not be secured and the case fell through. Negroes all over Alabama and Tennessee were relieved of their money in the same way, but so adrot was Jordan that nothing could be proved 6n him. He became so bold as to brag that the pension officials could never con- vict him; that they would never be able | to catch up with him.
 A dozen other persons were convicted before Judge Jones on charges Of violat- ing the pension laws. One of these was a white man who had as notary public witnessed voucher so that a son of the pensloner, who had died could receive the pension. The penalty for this is very heavy.
 There was also a conviction I the case of woman who had been mf rled twice and who represented the child of one marriage as being the child of another The circumstances were: Her first hus- band was not soldier, and by this mar riage she had child. This husband died and she re-married, this time marrying soldier. Upon this husbands death she asked for Q pension and stated on. oath that the child was the son of her soldier husband
 There were many other cases along the m nt Q 11Ny a1. af fln tions being for false swearing