The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1912-06-07
NAN ARRESTED HERE ON
CHlRGE OF Staying AGED
HUSBAND OF AFFINITY
Wasil Fesiak Alleged to Have
Thrown Victims Body Into
Kalamazoo River
GOES BACK TO ALLEGAN
Crime Revealed When Corpse
With Battered Skull is
Found in Water
GOES BACK TO ALLEGAN

Charged with the brutal killing Of
his affinitys aged husband, in a
lonely clump OF woods on a river
bank, Ave miles from Aliegan, Mich.
last February, Wasil Fesiak, % years
old. was arrested here, Thursday morn
ing, by Detectives Collins and Gin
sky, OF Vinewood station, and Sheriff
Volney w Ferris, of Allegan county,
as the finale OF true detective s.ory,
stranger than fiction.
The badly decomposed body of
Simon Drzewicka, 90 years old, was
found in a tangle OF weeds IN the
Kalamazoo river, near Allegan, May
26.. but II was in such condition that
IL was buried unidentified. Their tie
strange story of DrZewickas disap-
pearance, perseveringly investigated
by his sons and daughters, startcd 20
crystalline, and finally identified. Honu'
eide was revealed by crushed skull,
and an Involved trail finally lei to
Fesiak who had disappeared from t9at
vicinity on Easter Sunday, at about he
& time that the ice in the river started
TO break up.
Drzewicka had disappeared Febru-
airy Is, but Fesiak, who had been cut
ting wood with him on the banks OF
the river, returned TO Mrs. DrZewicka
with a story that her husband had
gone to Chicago. When DrZewicka' ;
body was recovered, the marks o. the
butt end of an ak, with which his skull
had been crushed, were plainly TO be
seen.
The tragedy had its incep ion
in Pleasant Valley. Pa, where
Drzewicka and - 4sesiak worked In
the coal mines, year ago. Fes-
lax. was hoaEder in--.the Drze-
wicka home. and his attentions to
Mrs Drzewicka were. finally noticed
by the latter's husband. Mrs. Drze-
wicka is 40 years old. Truce was de-
clared in a drunken revel, and while
the aged husband was under the in
fiuence of liquor, his wife and Wasil
induced him tU@give her a check for
$1,000, all his earthly wealth, with
which they skipped TO "a farm near
Allegan, taking Drzewicka's 10-year-
old daughter with them.@
Fesiak made the mistake OF writing
a letter to chum in Pleasant Valley,
and the letter fell into the hands OF
one of Drzewicka's six children, n mar-
ried woman, who promptly wrote a
decoy letter to her mother, telfing her
than the writer was dying, and 10 come
home She came, and there was re-
consultation between her and her eyed
husband, which. resulted in the woman
ragraaing to give her husband a~srare
in the farm which his money had pur-
chased for. her and her paramount.
Drzewicka went to Allegah and Fes-
lax stayed on in the home as. a
boarder.
February Is, Fesiak returned 10 the
house from a woodcuttfnE expedition,
with the news that Drzewicka had
suddenly made up his mind 20 go TO
Chicago. Phe- police -allege thar OF
that day, Fesiak buried the butt end
OF his AK in DrzeYfhlxa's skull aud
tossed the body into the river through
hole in the, ice. E.
Easter Sunday, Fesiak left the farm,
and Mrs. Dfzewfcka's son-tnelaw. John
KowalczyE;; WITH his. family, wens 70
Allegan TO five with her. She WIS
corresponding with Fesiak, who was
in Detroit, and when the body of her
husband was discovered and inaIly
identified. her .spn-in,law intercepted
one of Fesiak's letters, obtained TIE
address, and notified the police
Fesiak had given a wrong address.
but through il. the detectives got trace
OF him, and arrested him on the river
front, near the Wabash freight slip. 7
They declare that he almost collapsed I,
when placed under arrest He will be
taken to Allegan, Thursday afternoon.
on a charge of homicide. 1