Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1913-08-22
HOLD SUSPECT
IN CONNECTION
WITH THIEvIhC
Police Accuse Boy of Being
. One of Robbers In South
ern Section.
IDENTIFIED BY PARTY
INTERESTED

In the arrest of Lawrence Coates,
seventeen years old, of 1870 Lewis
street, yesterday, the police believe
they have one of the sneak thieves
who have been entering houses
about this city the past several
months Information supplied by
David and Louis Splitter, in whose
house young Coates is alleged to
have been found Wednesday night,
together with the youths own ad-
missions to the police Immediately
following his arrest about 4 o'clock
yesterday afternoon, convinces the
police that he Is guilty and that he
has at least one accomplice, whose
identity he will not disclose. Mem
bers of the Splitter family say they
saw him and another boy of about
the same size run from the rear of
their home shortly after 8 O'Clock,
1t has been the contention of
Chief of Police Burke, who arrested
young Coates, and his detectives
right along that boys were respon-
sible for the numerous sneak thief
jobs that have been committed here
abouts, especially In the southern
section of the city. The facts con-
cerning his entrance to the Splitter
home, as told by members OF the
| family, convinces the chief and de-
tectives that they were right.
Nothing is being left undone in
an effort to apprehend others be-
lieved to be implicated. Coates has
been released under bail in the
amount of $500 to await the action
of the grand jury. 1t was furnished
by his father.
Coates lives at 100 Lewis street,
which Is next door to the Splitter
residence. About 8 o'clock Wednes-
day night, while members of the
family were sitting on the front
porch and a servant girl WAS seated
In a dark corner of the rear stoop,
young Coates entered the kitchen,
lit is claimed. The girl saw him, but
he had failed to see her. Accord
ing to Mr.. Spttzer's story to the
police yesterday, he turned out a
dimly burning light in the kitchen
and was on his way into the din
ing room, when the girl went after
him and cried for help. The next
instant he came bounding out of the
back door, pushing the girl aside In
his flight. Mr.. Splitter declares, and
when he and other members of his
family reached the back stoop they
saw a person whom they insist was
Coates, in company with another
young man, running away. Moth
ing was taken from the house.
Considerable excitement followed
and Mr.. Spitzer told Chief of Police
Burke he thought the police would
hear about 1t and therefore did not
report it until yesterday.
Mr.. Spitzer declared he was posi-
tive 1t was young Coates that he
saw fleeing from his kitchen, despite
the fact that the youth denied 1t
emphatically. During grilling by
the police yesterday afternoon, the
young prisoner admitted he had
been in the Splitter home, but only
/ to see the servant girl. Splitter and
the police ridiculed this excuse, as
the girl could not speak word, OF
English. Other admissions and ac-
tions of the youth lead the police
| to believe that he is guilty. He
steadfastly refused to admit that
anybody ran away with him or that
| he had an aCcomplice.
The youth has an injured wrist
which the police declare he sus-
tanned when he was mixed up in the
attempted robbery of the homes OF
Tyrus w. Peck and V. p. Christof-
ferson August IA. He told the
police that he was injured In chas-
ing the supposed burglars that night
| Chief Burke says it was case OF
| the thief himself yelling stop thief
| to throw off suspicion.