Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1911-08-19
PRISONER CLAIMS
He IS I RAIN
BANDIT
REMARKABLE TALE OF
MAN IN DENVER JAIL
Admits Crime for Which He
May Suffer Death in Order
That Wife May Share in Ten
Thousand Dollar Reward.

Denver, Colo., AuB. lN.-Frank NJ.
Watson, Denver prisoner, claims 10
be one of the men who on January /,
last. held up the Southern Pacific
Limited at Reese. Utah, killing por-
ter and robbing the passengers. Po-
lice officials incline TO regard his story
as fabrication.
Watson was arrested in Denver in
May on the charge of safe-blowing at
Alliance, Neb. A few days after his
confinement in the local Jail he told
Chief Armstrong of the Denver police
department his alleged part in the
Southern Pacific train robbery giving
as an explanation for his voluntarily
confession that he wanted his wife and
family TO get the $4,000 reward Of
tered for the robbers. Chief Arm
strong kept the confession a secret in
order that il might be investigated and
II did not become public until today.
Accor ding to Watsons stJry
his accomplices In the Southern Pa
cific holdup were II. M. Roberts, of
Mullen, Neb., and Joseph Collins, of
Omaha. The robbery was planned,
he says. at Omaha, at the Dodge ho-
tel, his wife, Roberts and Collins be-
ing present. Their original intention
was to rob the Sunday night train.
but they Ad not reach Ogden in
time.
Collins. who had come to Omaha
with the tip CONCERNING the Southern
Pacific job knew rancher named
Sprague, living just outside of Og-
den, from whom the trio secured
three horses and who accompanied
them to the railroad at Reese. They
reached this station near midnight
rA hA lin,
approaching he threw the block sig
nal causing the train to stop.
Watsons description of the hold
up which followed tallies closely
with the reports sent out at the time
of the robbery. He says that Col
lins shot the negro porter at his
(Watson's) command. the porter not
responding to their orders with suf-
ficient alacrity.
Watson said the three robbers sep
arated after the holdup and did not
meet again until they reached Omaha
a few days later. There they ar
ranged to dispose of the booty. Wat
son says, through a man named
Harry Crawford at Lincoln, Neb
Watson says the trio got about $400
out Of the holdup.
Following Watson's first confess
sion ogden and Southern Pacific po-'
lice officials came to Denver and
interrogated Watson, who swore to
the truth of his story, which was
taken down by stenographer. The
ogden officials, however, have re-
ported that they are unable to find
and man answering to the descrip-
ton of Sprague, as given by Watson.
However, the police are unable to ac-
count for Watson's motive in making
such confession, inasmuch as the
death penalty might possibly be in
flicted in case he We're proved gull
ty of the crime in which he partici-
pated.
Watson ALSO claimed to have been
one of the men who robbed the
Greeley, Colo, post office about a
year ago, and so much stock was
taken in this story that he was taken
by government officers all the way to
North Dakota, where he said the
stamps were hidden. but today the
party returned declaring there was
nothing in yarn.
The police are still working on
Watson, in the hope that some tan
gible statement may be obtained from
him.
Watson also asserts that he partici-
pated in the holdup of an oregon
Short Line passenger train near Og-
den near June II, 1910, and that
r. NJ Roberts and Ray Roberts,
brothers, were his partners in that
affair. Ray Roberts afterward was
killed at Alliance, Neb., by deputy
sheriff.