The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1909-12-02
Will TRY THE
MAYBRAY GANG
Wholesale Swindling Cases to
Come up Next Week at
Des Moines, la.
WORKED FAKE SPORT EVENTS
This is Charge Against Number Of
Alleged Crooks Who Worked,
II Is Believed, Colossal
Fake Scheme.

Des Moines. H.. Dec. 2.-When the
cases of James c. Maybray and sew
eral score OF his associates are taken
up for trial at the term OF the United
States court beginning next week the
public will learn for the first time
the full details of what is declared
to be the most colossal scheme ever
devised to separate the unwary from
their money. For more than a year
some of the shrewdest men of the
United States secret service have been
engaged in gathering evidence against
the Maybray band. Their investiga-
tions have extended to every section or
the United States and to Canada and
Alaska. From the evidence at hand
IL would appear that the most sue
cessful of the gold-brick operators In
days gone by were but novices In
the swindling game as compared with
the men who are charged with fleece
ing their victims OF millions through
the medium of fake horse races. prize
fights, wrestling matches and pc
destrian contests.
At Council Bluffs last September the
United States Grand Jury for the
Southern District of Iowa indicted
James c. Maybray and eighty-four as
sociates on a charge of conspiring TO
defraud through the use of the United
States mails. A number of those in
dicted are now in Jail here awaiting
trial. Some of the accused have never
been located by the authorities, while
a few others have been successful
i'm fighting extradition proceedings.
wrestlers, pugilists, turfmen and other
sporting men of considerable reputa-
ton. have been involved In the case
Others of the band are declared to be
well known criminals with long rec
ords.
Although specific amounts were not
mentioned i'm the indictments, 1t Is
said that the amounts lost by the al
legged victims of Maybray and his as
sociates will exceed a million dollars.
The sums lost run from $1,000 to $3o'-
900, the latter sum having been placed
on a fake horse race, according to
the evidence at hand, by Missouri
banker.
Victims in eighteen States, the
territory of Alaska and the Dominion
of Canada are named in the indict-
ments. indicating the wide range OF
territory over which the band are al
legged to have piled their vocation. AS
a basis Of operation. they used, accord
ing to the indictment, the cities or
Little Rock, st. Louis, Seattle, New
Orleans. Denver, Council Bluffs, Bur-
lington and Davenport, to which places
il is alleged victims were taken by
the numerous "steerers."
The list of eighty-five alleged VIC
Tins given In the indictment includes
the following: william Dwyer, La
Crosse, wis. Charles ID. Alberts. Sioux
City: c. w. Field, Minneapolis; F. X.
Roethle, Neenah. Wis; A. larring-
ton, Minneapolis; Ed Steng :. Her
mosa. S. d.; r. A. Frazer, Helena,
Mont: III. Ford Vancouver. B. c.;
John Biegger, Sioux Falls; Louis Hen
dell. Marquette. Mich: Thomas Cate,
Font du Lac. Wis: Joseph w. Leisen,
Menominee. Wis; G. A. Nelson, Alma,
Mich; Edward Jones' Shamokin, Pa;
G. Nelson Pratt, Toledo. Ohio; +. ELL
son. Kamloops. Canada. and +. w.
Whalen, Port Arthur. Canada.