River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1912-05-02
AUTO BANDIT SHOT
BoNNoT AND NOTORIOUS AN
ARcHIsT PERISH IN THRILL
ING ENCOUNTER.
BLOWN WITH DYNAMITE.
Organized Outlaw Gang Had Terror.
lied PopuIace for Months, Com
hitting Many Muir
ders.

Paris, France.-Bonnot, the leader
of an organized gang OF automobile
bandits who have been terrorizing
Paris and. the surrounding districts
for months past, and Dubois, a no.
torious anarchist, were shot to death
In one of the most thrilling enco1n-
ters in the annals of French crime.
A garage at Choisy lie Roi, six miles
south Of Paris, in which the bandits
had taken refuge, was blown up by dy.
Mantle after these two men had kept
at bay for hours large part of the pc.
lice force of Paris, contingent OF
gendarmes, two companies of repub-
lican guards and a company of en-
| gineers. Ten thousand spectators
viewed the battle from points of
vantage.
Bonnet and Dubois, after wounding
two policemen, took refuge in the
garage. They were trapped in the
building, which was at once surround
! ed. Reinforcements were dispatched
to aid the police, composed of gen.
darmes, republican guards and en-
gineers. A battery of artillery was on
the way from Versailles when a small
detachment of soldiers succeeded in
| placing dynamite against the struc-
ture and blowing out the front wall
| Bonnet was captured alive. He was
riddled with bullets and died on the
way to hospital The great crowd
that had gathered with cries of death
to Bonnot," almost tore the bandit
from the soldiers, several of whom
were injured.
Parisians, particularly automobiles,
have been in state of terror because
of the reckless crimes of the automo-
bile bandits, which reached a climax
in the murder of Assistant Superin-
tendent Jouin of the detective depart.
ment and wounding of Chief Inspector
Coleman by Bonnet on the morning
of April "a. The government then
ordered all the available police to hunt
the assassins day and night.
M. Guichard, superintendent of de-
tectives, tracked Bonnet to the iso.
lated garage at Choisy lie Roi. AS
Guichard and his men approached, a
bandit, who proved to be Dubois, was
preparing to mount a motorcycle. He
answered the summons to surrender
by opening fire, while he returned to
the garage. At the same moment
there was hail of bullets from a win
dow and two detectives fell, one with
two bullets in his abdomen. 1t was
Bonnet shooting from the first floor.
The detectives retired and general
alarm was sent out. Police, gen.
darmes, and all classes of people,
came quickly They were armed with
muskets and revolvers, and directed
hundreds of bullets at the garage,
from which came steady rain of lead
in reply. Finally cart was rugged up
with thick mattresses as a barricade
and the attacking party backed slowly
toward the garage, the dynamite
placed, and the front of the building
blown out.
All the while the bandits were vol.
Ieying steadily, but no one was hit.
AS the front wall collapsed with a
crash, the police and republican guards
rushed up. On the ground floor they
found Dubois dead. They mounted a
narrow stairway and observed Bon
not streaming with blood, his left arm
in a sling, crouching behind a mat
tress.
Bonnet was unconscious and eX-
pired on his way to the hospital. The
doctors found 70 wounds. There were
! - IN, ic
abdomen, and they marvelled that he
lived as long as he did. Dubois had
three wounds.
1t is estimated that 100000 persons
visited the scene of the battle during
the day. They saw only the ruins OF
the garage, for, soon after the explo
sion, flames broke out and destroyed
the structure.
About 80 members of the band have
now been arrested or are out of the
way. Evidence in the possession OF
the police show that they pursued their
career by a marvellous system, having
agents in all parts of Europe. One OF
the four members of the organization
arrested Saturday had check books
and accounts, proving that he was the
treasurer. He regularly invested the
stolen funds. When bonds or other
negotiable papers were stolen he ar
ranged for their sale to- brokers in
different parts of Europe.
The speciality of the gang was hold
ing up bank messengers. In several
cases they obtained from $4,000 tc
$4,000 in one haul. Ten murders are
charged to them in the last foul
months.
To Learn Secret OF Andree's Death
New York, N. Y.-Convinced that
he is in possession of information