New-York tribune., 1912-02-26
TWO HELD FOR MURDER
OF SHOPKEEPER
BROOKLYN Police Take Speedy
Means to End Crime Wave
from Over the River.
SAY ONE MAN CONFESSED
Implicated Other, Detectives De-
clare, a Member Of Prominent
Family-Clear Case Against
Men, They Maintain.

The crime wave Of robberies and MUIR
ders by hold-up men that has RACED IN
Manhattan and reached Brooklyn sat
urday noon when Walter Meseritz was
wantonly murdered by two men in MS
little store at No. 40 Flatbush avenue
was marked yesterday by the arrest OF
two alleged slayers. They will be ar
raigned in the Flatbush court to-day.
The prisoners are James Cassidy, tWen-
ty-seven years old. q professional burg
lar OF No. 56 state street. Brooklyn, and
Frank Redmond. twenty-five years old,
the alleged black sheep Of prominent
Brooklyn family. living i'm big brown
stone mansion at No. 376 clinton street,
When Cassidy was arrested a new tic.
similar TO one of a line stolen from
Meseritz's store, was knotted round MS
neck
Deputy Police Commissioner Dough
erty and Inspector Hughes, who went
10 Brooklyn Saturday to take personal
command Of the case, working with
CAPTAIN Coughlin head OF the Brook
Iyn detectives, wrung q supposed con-
said to have admitted pawnins one OF
three rafcty razors stolen from Mese-
ritz's store Immediately after he Was
tnot down. He also implicated Red
nond It is charged. Cassidy denies he
was near Meseritz's shop. and Red
mond. whose brother is a lawyer, de-
MED he bad pawned one Of the razors
or knew anything whatever about the
crime But Cassidy, who said THIEF
had given him the razor he pawned,
identified Redmond IN Brooklyn Police
Headquarters last night as his COM
panion Of Saturday, who pawned some
thing" in p pawnshop at Smith and
Bergen streets, which the police can
prove was a safety razor stolen from
Mescritz's place
Clear Case, Say Police
Deputy Commissioner Dougherty is
convinced that the police have q clear
case against the two prisoners, as the
clerks in the three pawnshops where
Meseritzs gold watch and stickpin and
safety razors were pledged can identify
the two men as having been in their
stores within an hour to an hour and
half after the murder Of the Flatbush
shopkeeper.
When Redmond was arrested at his
home by Detectives Reynolds and Don
elon, who were accompanied by De-
tectives Cunningham, DAILY and Man
ming, Redmond's widowed mother
tainted, and his sister. school teacher,
became hysterical. His brother kept
calm. and after telling the prisoner to
go along with the police warned him not
to make any statements.
Mrs. Redmond and her daughter were
both under { physicians care all night.
and the mothers condition was precari-
Gus.
The first link in the chain Of evidence
ers was in canvassing the jewelry stores
IN the neighborhood of the crime for the
number of Meseritzs watch, which the
hold-up men had taken from his lifeless
body. This gave the police the number
Of the stolen watch. Next Detective
OF the stolen safety raEors from the in
voices found in the mcrdercd mans
shop.
With these facts in their possession.
eighty detectives made a round of the
pawnshops with the result that by 8
o'clock Saturday night they had recoo-
cred the stolen property and had oh
tained q description Of the two men who
bad pledged the loot Immediately their
A3spicions rested on Cassidy. He lived
N row of poor tenement houses near
the Atlantic avenue ferry, and at times
was known 10 put up at lucent lodg-
ing house, known as the Brighton House,
at No. 141 Atlantic avenue.
Questioned for Five Hours.
Watches We're set on both houses. and
at noon yesterday CASSIDY was arrested
rs he was coming out of his house He
was taken to Police Headquarters and
questioned for five hours by Captain
John Coughlin. of the Brooklyn detec-
tive bureau, and by Mr.. Dougherty and
Inspector Hughes.
Redmond told several conflicting
stories Of his whereabouts Saturday at
the time Of the robbery and murder He
enlisted in the army two years ago, but
his family purchased his discharge after
he had served a year.
Mrs. Cassidy. the mother of one Of the
prisoners, was not told by the police of
the charge against her son.
MY son is a good boy" she said. He
was home nearly all day Saturday. He
was away only from IL in the morning to
2 or in the afternoon. He helps me, and
when go out washing some days and he
Is not working he stays home and cleans
the house"
The three or four hours Cassidy's
mother said he was away from home are
the hours in which Meseritz was mur-
dered and the loot from his stora M u.na1