Perth Amboy evening news., 1909-09-14
KEASBEY MAN
ARRESTED AS
A BLACK HAND
Is Accused of Sending
Threatening Letters to
New Brunswick Man.
$4,000 OR DEATH is
THE DEMAND OF WRITER
Also Threatened the Des-
iruction of the Johnson &
Johnson Factory.

T Special to the EVENING NE Wg
New Brunswick Sept. 14:-Peter
Uregus late yesterday afternoon con-
fessed he had threatened to kill John
A. Manley, superintendent of the
Johnson & Johnson medical supply
factory at New Brunswick, threaten
ed to dynamite the factory with its
1900 employees and TO blow up the
home of the superintendent In event
of refusal to pay $4,000 blackmail
Judge Charles w. Sedan received
the confession in the county jail at
New Brunswick, while Mr.. Manley,
whose life, home and business had
been threatened, listened with ner-
vous apprehension The arrest of
Uregus came at the end of great
effort
Prosecutor Booraem yesterday af-
ternoon allowed two Pinkerton de-
tectives, Mr.. Manley and Charles A.
Mccormick, besides Justice Sedan,
to interview the prisoner, who. when
arrested denied having written the
letters. They got him to admit that
he was the author, however. He was
formerly employed by Johnson &
Johnson and said he thought he
could get his job back by writing
threatening letters When he left
their employ he went to Ashtabula,
Ohio, to take a position, but did not
stay long. He returned but could
not get his old place. He then went
to Keasbey. He said he read that
the queen of Hungary had been
blown up and he decided to try the
scheme to get his job When asked
how he expected to succeed without
signing his name, he said he Gid not
know He has wife in the old
country.
This morning the mans trunk was
searched. A quantity of cardboard
was found in it. This, the authori-
ties believe, conelusiyely proves that
he wrote the letters for in the box
that was placed in the cemetery in
response to one of his letters was
placed quantity of cardboard so as
to make the box weigfty as if con-
tanning money.
There have been rumors of hlaekhand-
letters at johnson & johnson Is for over
week, but in order NOT to defeat the
ends of justice the reports were dis
credited In the press.
The three letters were all in the same
handwriting, all written in Hungarian
and all posted at the Keasbey post Of
fee
/ This helped considerably in tracing
/ the writer.
The First Letter
/ The first letter was mailed at Keas-
4 hey on August %, but it did not have a
1 postage stamp upon it and it was held
I for postage. 1t demanded that Mr..
Manley should get $4,000 from John
son & johnson and leave it with $1,000
of his own money under cross at the
I Polish ceemtery at Keasbey by Satur-
4 day, August IS, at sP NJ Mr. Manley
was notified by the postmaster that this
letter was held for postage aud sent
for it. In the meantime ne received
another letter written in Hungarian,
dated August 81 and demanding $4,000
Of johnson & johnson s omney and s4,-
COO of his personal money, this to be
left al the Polish cemetery gate at
I Keasbey. This letter was received the
day before the belated letter arrived.
Saturday, September 4, was the date set
for the leaving of the money in a box.
Pinkertons Called.
johnson & johnson at once called the
Pinkerton detective agency into the
case and Detectives Clifford and jane
son were put on the case.
Mr.. Manley left a box at the en-
trance to the cemetery at o clock tho
evening of September T. In it he wrote
that he did not have the money just
] then, as he had just returned from his
vacation. He explained that as it had
been specified that the coin must be
German money. he had not had time to
| get it changed.
Left Box at Cemetery.
The box was left at the cemetery gate
and disappeared. On Wednesday last
I Mr.. Manley received the letter which
, he had written back again from Keas-
hey with a demand written upon the
back that unless $4,000 of johnson &
johnson s money and $1,000 of his own
money was left at the plant by SAT-
urday night, September IL, that there
would be no further delay in carrying
out the threats of destruction to life
and property.
Mr. Manley took the box down to the
cemetery gate again Saturday evening
and left it there. The place was
watched from 5 to l0:30 o clock, but
no one came for the box.
The Pinkerton detectives had already
tracked their man and they were wait
ing to see if he would fall into the trap,
but he did not.
Traced BY Letter.
They had watched the Keasbey post
Office. On Monday and Tuesday morn
ings they were on hand when the Office
opened at 6 clock and remained till
closing time, waiting for the hlackmail
CONTINUED on page a.
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