St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1912-02-28
BANNTSTER IMPRISONED
Man Who Robbed St. JOhnsbury
Residents Given From Seven to
Nine Years. Others Sentenced.

The hard fight conducted by
States Attorney Simonds and Sheriff
Worthen to secure the conviction
and imprisonment of Bertram Ban
mister, alias Bert Crosby" has at
last been crowned with success and
Sheriff Worthen left yesterday
morning with the prisoner to begin
a term of not more than nine nor
less than seven years at hard labor
in the states prison at Windsor, a
sentence pronounced by Judge w.
H. Taylor in the final session of the
special term of Caledonia county
court last Monday afternoon. 1t is
seldom that the court house has
contained at one time SO many men
charged with serious and shocking
crimes as it held Monday afternoon
when in addition to Bannister, an
expert robber of postofices and
wanted by the government for
breaks at Jefferson, N. H., at Sax
toms River and several Long Island
Offices and also wanted by the
Maine and New Hampshire officers
for breaks in their states, there
were Napoleon Nedeau charged with
selling intoxicating liquor. and Hen
ry Gilman, William H. Burt and
John Pedrozzo charged with rape.
Bannister was sentenced as stated
above; Nedeau plead guilty and was
sentenced to serve three months or
not more than eight months in Cal
edonia county Jail, William H. Burt
plead guilty and was sentenced to
serve not less than 18 months nor
hov r.
correction at Rutland, John Pedroz-
20 was placed under 81 ,000 bail and
Henry Gilman, who it is admitted
committed rape on an IL year old
girl was placed under $1,000 bail
A hearing was also given in the di-
vorce case of Rheaba B. Smith VS..
Jackson W. Smith in which tempor-
ary alimony was asked. This COM
pleted the work of the special term
and it was declared adjourned with
out day.
The Fight for Bannister.
Bertram Bannister was arrested
in Brooklyn after a long hunt for
him by the Wood-Morgan Detective
Agency of Boston and an account of
his capture there is given in a
paper below. AS told last
week it was necessary to have an
indictment against him in order to
secure his extradition from New
York and when Messrs. Simonds and
Worthen went after him with the in
dictment, Bannister's lawyer claim |
ed that the prisoner in Brooklyn
was not Bannister. The Vermont |
officers first had to prove to Gov. |
Dix of New York that he was Ban |
mister. Then in Brooklyn writ of !
habeas corpus was issued and the |
Vermont officers had to prove before
Judge Fred Crane of the Supreme |
Court of the State of New York that /
the prisoner was Bertram Bannister
and that he was a fugitive from
Justice from the state of Vermont.
1t was at this hearing that Louis
Gingras from this place silenced his
cross-eXaminatiOn by Bannister's
adroit lawyer by announcing that he
was the mayor of st. Johnsbury."
1t must be stated that Mr.. Gingras
lid not understand the lawyers
question but his answer turned the
rick. The party started for Yer
mont at the close of the hearing and
Irrived here at three o'clock
Wednesday morning and placed
3annister in the local Jail.
The Twenty-First Conviction.
The capture and conviction of |
3annister is the twenty-frst capture t
made of yeggmen by States Attorney ]
,imonds, who has been aided by
sheriff Worthen and detectives from t
he Wood-Morgan Agency. Every s
nan captured has been convicted of {
rime and sent to prison, many of c
in, hut r
ne in custody. Bannister was the
rst to be sentenced in Caledonia c
ounty court.
With Bannister in court Monday \
ras a young woman named May a
aylor, May MCGUIRE and now under t
he name of May Crosby. Taylor c
Tas her maiden name and she mar
led a man named Mcclure from
HON she was never divorced and of i
lte she had gone under the name T
Crosby, the alias of Bannister. e
he followed him from New York
nd wept copiousy in court while he r
loaded guilty and was given his
The story of Bannister's Capture
/ Brooklyn follows: L L
Brooklyn, N. Y, Citizen, Feb. 9, G
1929 n
Ofcers from three different states, g
0st Office inspectors, secret service +
Ulcers and number of detectives o
,nnected with private agencies took e
look today at Bert Bannister, alias c.
ert Crosby, who was arrested last g
Ight by Detective Frank Carberry e.
the local bureau, after a chase of s.
,veral blocks in a trolley car. b
ST. l. a A. Lon
ficers, after viewing the prisoner :
the detective room at State street
and hearing of the
Lnfura of Rannisfar declared that