Goldsboro semi-weekly argus., 1909-10-02
JACK, THE ACID
THR0WER, CAUGHT
Chas. Cooper, Arrested In Balti-
more, Says He Was Driven
by Irresistible Impulse
PERvERT USED A SYRINGE
Police Found Bottle of Acid in His
Pockets-Accused Railroad Fire
man Said to Have Admitted He
Made Attacks on Fifty Women.

Baltimore, Md.-That he is con-
trolled by an irresistible impulse to go
among the women that throng Balti-
more's fashionable shopping section,
and that when he sees an attractive
young woman he must squirt acid on
her, is the confession of "Jack the
Acid Thrower," captured by detectives
after hunt lasting a year.
The man is Charles Cooper, thirty
one years old, married, and a railroad
locomotive fireman. When at work
Cooper Is as good fireman as runs
on the Western Maryland, making as
high as $50 a month, but he says he
spent every hour he had off where
women congregate. He says an I'M
pulse would seize him to dash sui
phuric acid on women or girls and he
was not content until he had done SO.
Then he would forget all about it.
The police have reports from thirty
three victims. Cooper himself, ac-
cording to the police, acknowledges
| the number may be fifty.
The favorite method of the man has
| been to edge up to young woman in
crowd and squirt the fluid on her
6tOCh4uSS O1 O10SS, AO4OS LII
the skirt or going through the hois-
cry and burning the limb. He had
two syringes and bottle of acid on
him when arrested. Three bottles Of
acid were found in the cellar Of his
home.
| The police has had description Of
the man from his many victims, but
never were able to come up with him.
He has terrorized the women of the
city for a year. The mention Of his
name would throw school children
into a panic.
For over a week Captain of Detec-
tives Pumphrey has had Detectives
| Coughlin and Pohler at work in an at
tempt to round up the acid thrower.
With only a meager description of the
man the detectives were ordered to
drop all other cases and to work
night and day until they captured the
offender. Since that time the pair
have 1oitered in all parts of the city
in which the acid throwing crimes
have been committed until they
caught the man. AS the detectives
were nearing Howard street, on Lex
ington, they spied a tall, slim man,
who seemed to be watching carefully
individual women in the crowd Of
shoppers.
: The man sauntered up to woman
, who stood in the doorway of No. 223
West Lexington street inspecting a
show window. At the time the de-
tectives were on the north side of
Lexington street, and they watched
from their side of the street. Care
fully the man neared the woman, and
as he gained her side he dropped to
one knee as If to button his shoe. The
5 alert eyes of the two watchers, how
t ever, saw the man suddenly slip his
right hand into his trousers pocket
3 and quickly withdraw it again, at the
same time bringing his hand up near
the skirt of the unsuspecting woman,
who stood calmly gazing into the
store window. Both men realized
that it was their time to act, and
they dashed across the street as the
man rose to his full height again and
walked out Of the doorway toward
Howard street, the woman a second
e later moving down the street in an
: easterly direction.
t Detective Pohler seized the man
I while Detective Coughlin slipped into
the crowd to call back the woman
= but she had disappeared in the throng
AS Pohler seized the prisoner he lei
out loud cry and attempted to throw
e into the street something which he
8 held in his right hand. Pohler was
e too quick for him, however, and seiz
It ing the man in grip Of steel he
forced the hand open and found 6
y syringe. Detective Coughlin had join
e ed his comrade in the meantime, ant
e without giving the man a chance tt
" reach his pockets again the detectives
:, hurried him down Lexington street ts
Park avenue and thence to detectiv,
headquarters. A bottle partially fllet
with acid, a second syringe and tn,
e metal portion of a third instrumen
't were found in his pockets.
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