Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-02-16
HOLDS UP HIS
HANDS, BUT IS
AT ONCE SHOT
ASSAlLANT FIRES DIRECTLY
AFTER GIVING ORDER
VICTIM FALLS SCREAMING, BUT
RECEIVES SECOND BULLET
Police Believe Robbery, Though AL
legged, Was Not the Real Motive.
Wounds Probably Will
Prove Fatal

"
The shooting was done by one OF
two men who assaulted Rhigetti as he
was nearing home, and took place in
the presence of a number OF witnesses.
So dim was the light in the vicinity.
however, that but one of the witnesses
and Rhigetti himself were able to give
q good description of the two men.
Twenty minutes after the shooting
Detectives Carroll and Ingram arrest
ed E. B. Nichols of OXnard, Cal, with
III two blocks of the scene and booked
him in detinue at the central station
on suspicion.
Rhigetti was taken to the Sisters
hospital, where ne was operated on.
Before being placed under an anaes-
thetic he stated that there had been
an attempt to hold him up, and that
before the men who had stopped him
attempted to take any of his property
they shot him.
The police are of the opinion that
revenge and not robbery was the mo-
tive for the shooting. AS only one of
the men suspected of the shooting had
been captured, they refused to give
any information and declined to make
known the name of the man arrested.
Rhigetti was on his way home from
his work Shortly before o'clock he
arrived in front of the residence of A.
L. Lackey, 1871 Sunset boulevard. In
front of the house are two telephone
poles, and behind each of the poles
was a man. AS Rhigetti arrived at a
point about equidistant between the
poles both men sprang out, and the
taller Of the two, young, smooth
faced fellow, tall and slim and dressed
in d gray suit, called out Throw up
your hands!'
Both Shots Take Effect
Although Rhigetti complied, the tall
L II ~1rvxzn
POINTED at him, fired almost instantly.
The bullet penetrated his abdomen and
he fell with a scream for help. In
stantly second shot followed the
first, the bullet striking Rhigetti in the
small of the back.
The two men then turned and ran,
one going along a small path leading
toward Elysian Park road and the 9TH
running down Sunset boulevard.
When the shooting occurred A. l..
Lackey, in front of whose place the as
sault was made, was standing in his
front room. He heard the sound of
the shots, sprang out of this door and
ran to the sidewalk. AS he did so one
of the running men turned and fired
another shot, but whether at him or
not he does not know.
John Vetter, driver for the Los An
geles Transfer company, was driving a
team within a few feet of the spot
where the shooting took place, heard
the sound of the shots and saw the
flames of the revolver, but was not
close enough to get a good description
of the two men. George Wyllie Of
1888 Allison avenue was also near the
spot and saw the two men, and he
alone gave a fairly good description.
He saw the men run from the body of
their PROSTATE victim, after firing two
shots at him, and saw and heard the
third shot fired a moment later. With
him was G. l.. Webb of 1878 Park ter
race and Adds Webb, the young son
of the latter.
In Pool of Blood
Rhigetti was found lying on the
! sidewalk in a pool of blood and in a
senai-comatose condition. When slight
ly revived he was asked who shot him
and he replied: Il was shot by two
men who tried to hold me up. They
told me to throw up my hands, and
when l had done so they at once fired.
They shot three times at me, twice
after l was on the ground
The police ambulance was hurried
to the scene and the wounded man, at
the request of his wife and DR.. A. w.
Moore, who had been summoned, was
taken to the Sisters hospital, where
the operating table was made ready at
once.
When the operation was performed
it was found that the bullet which had
entered the abdomen had perforated
the intestines in three places and
lodged in the cavity. The second shot
had struck the middle of the back and
lodged in the muscles near the spinal
column.
The operation was performed by DR..
Moore and DR.. Thomas G. Myers, and
both surgeons stated that the man had
only a slight chance of recovery.
Meantime Detectives Carroll and In
gram and Patrolmen Dorsey and Har-
Ian had been hurried to the scene.
They were given a description of the
two men and began a search through
out the neighbOrhOod.
Within twenty minutes after they
arrived at the scene Detectives Ingram
and Carroll came on Nichols, who was
hurrying along Elysian park road. He
was stopped and questioned, and gave
such evasive and incoherent answers
that he was taken to the station. Half
an hour later he was identified by a
number of witnesses as greatly resem-
bling the man who had done the shoot
ing, and he answered perfectly the de-
scription given at the hospital by
Rhigetti.
Revolver Fired Recently
In his pocket was found a 38-caliber
revolver which had been fired within d
short time, the weapon smelling strong
ly Of freshly burned powder, and being
blackened around the chamber and in
the barrel by a recent discharge of
powder.
Nichols stated that he had just ar
rived from OXnard on a freight train,
and had taken short cut through the
park to avoid policemen along the rail-
road tracks. He stated that he had
fired one shot from his revolver while
in a lonely part of the park to see if ii
was in working order, so that he could
protect himself from holdup men in
case he was attacked.
Furthermore Nichols stated that he
formerly lived in Los Angeles and had
worked on a grading outfit in the park.
but that he had been absent from the
city several weeks. He denied the
shooting or that he knew the wounded
man or any OF his friends
Tt is the theory of the police that the
prisoner and the wounded man were
acquainted, that they had had trouble
and that the shooting of last night was
the result of a sudden quarrel and not
of a holdup, as claimed by Rhigetti.
The second man concerned in the
shooting was not found by the police.
although the entire district was combed
as with a fine toothed rake
Look for q servant 1.-THE want adj way this
fine It's usually better