The Sentinel=record., 1911-03-07
FRAUD
 INDICTMENTS
SEVEN PROMINENT DETROIT AND CHICAGO MEN HELD BY THE
 COVE RNMENT.
Alleged That They Defrauded the Federal Government Out of $5o,- oO0.oOo Worth of Valuable Coal
 Lands.

Detroit, Mich, March 6.-Govern- ment investigation into alleged Alas kan coal land frauds involving ap, lproximately 4S,0O0 acres of land val ued at more than $50,000.000 resulted in the issuance tonight of an indict- ment by the local federal grand jury charging seven individuals. with a conspiracy against the United States.
 The defendants are:
 Wilbur w. McAlpine, Albert H Roehm. George w. Ross, Frank D Andrus, Arthur L. Holmes and Mo Curdy c. LeBeau, all of Detroit, and John M Bushnell of Chicago.
 The foregoing are officials of a company known as the Michigan Alaska Development Company.
 The contention of the government is that the defendants censpired to
 ndLce l,etween 200 and BOO individ- rafs .u become stockholders in the Michigan Alaska Company by making
 tranduient and fictitious locations or certain Alaska coal lands" thereby violating the land entry laws of 1910, which made it illegal for more than four persons to form a company for locating Alaska coal lands and taking out patents on more than $40 acres. It is alleged that the several stockholders or coal land claimants were led to believe they were locat- ing the lands for their exclusive use, ''but in truth and in fact for the use and benefit of the sesen defendants and the Michigan-Alaska Develop ment Company"
 The s..0-iigan-ALaska Development Company was organized under the laws of, Arizona. w w. McAlpine Is the president. The coal lands involved are at Juneau, Alaska, and several contiguous tracts in the vicinity or Homer upon the western end of Kenai Peninsula, bordering upon Cook Inlet. The claims are said to have been To- cated by about 200 Detroit and Mich
 gan residents and hundreds others claimants from New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle and other western points.
 It is declared by the defendants that strictly individual entry of t1e lands has been made and that the Michigan Alaska company was organ ized as a benefit association to aid the stockholders or c aimants, to bet ter protect their title and develop their lands. They deny stock was to be sold and they insist the corpora tion was not formed for the eNploita- tion of the coal lands in the general market
 The penalty for conviction on change of conspiracy against the gov- ernment of this nature Is two years imprisonment or a fine of not more than s10.000.
 The investigation which l to the indictment returned tonight against Bushnell and other men accused of attempting to defraud the government of Alaskan ceal lands asasiitd,ss was begun about four years ago. while the pres ent secretary of the interior, Mir. Bal finger, was commissioner of the gen. eral land office. It was by MT. Bal fingers orders that field service agents of the land office started the probe. During the last few months Secretary Ballinger stated tonight, more vigorous attention had been paid to the investigation with the re- suit that the case has been ready for some time to turn over to the depart ment of justice for prosecution. The alleged attempts to defraud were in what are generally known as the Watson group of claims in southern Alaska.