Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-06-25
LOPON|O, ACCUSING
POLICE, TELLS NEW
STORY OF MURDER
Accused Slayer of Patrolman
McGoverno Admits Perjury
at Former Trials.

trials for murder, Salvatore Loponio,
on the witness stand today, in the
Court of Oyer and Terminer, before
Judge Martin, told a new story-a
story which he now swears to be true
of the happenings on the night of
October 10, 1912, when Patrolman
John ]. McGovern was shot to death.
While admitting that he lied at the
other trials, he still denies that he
knows anything about the murder.
The testimony of Loponio and his
nephews, Raeffele Berlaugierri and
Caesenzo lombard. today, laid the
whole case against Loponio to the
third degree methods of the police in
Investigating the crime.
Under cross-examination by AS
sstant Prosecutor Wilbur Mott, Lo-
pcnio declared that he told the story
he did at the other trials upon ad-
vice of his counsel, Irving w. Teeple.
Mr.. Teeple told him, he said, to tell
in court the same thing ne told the
police when he made a statement the
night after the shooting. He was now
telling the truth, he declared, upon
advice of Victor D'Aloia, who is now
associate with Mr.. Teeple in the
case.
Admits He Lied.
Loponio said he lied when he told
the court and jury at the other trials
that Raeffele Berlangierri had come
to his house that night and said: II
killed bum on Seventh avenue and
the police are after me-" His whole
accusation of Berlangierri was un-
true, he swore. He told the lies be-
cause he was afraid that Berlang-
Terri and lombard would again ac-
cuse him of the shooting as they had
done in the station house.
After Loponio finished his story TO-
day, Raeffelo Berlangierri, one of the
bows indicted with Loponio for the
murder took the stand and told his
story for the first time in court He
swore hiatt the accusation he made
against Loponio at the Second pre-
cinct was untrue, and that 1T was
forced from him by Plainclothesman
Thomas Adubato at the point of
revolver.
Adubato. the witness declared, took
him by the hair of the head and
threw him against the wall and then
with the gun made him write state
ment accusing Loponio of the murder.
He intended to tell the truth in court
he said but he wasn't given the
chance
Neither he nor Crezenzo LON bardi,
I,oponio's nephew. left their bed the
night fthe shooting, he testified,
until the police aroused them at z
o'clock the following morning. He
knew absolutely nothing of the shoot
ing of the policeman, he continued,
except what had been told him by
Adubato in making him write the
statement.
LopOniO Goes on stand
Loponio went on the stand yester-
day afternoon as the first witness in
his own defense. He testified that he
spent the whole day October 10, 1912,
at his sisters home, 70 Crane street.
He left there at 9:35 O'Clock and
walked home, going through Stone
street to Park avenue, and down
Park avenue to his shop in High
street. On his way there, he said, he
met a gang of boys at Park and Sum-
mer avenues, and they told him that
a policeman haid nailed up the front
door of his shop some time before
After placing two bundles he was
in the house, he returned to
talk to the boys, and while there he
saw two young men in some kind of
trouble on the other side of Summer
avenue, he declared. He went to
them and advised them to go home.
A few minutes later Loponio went
back to his shop, according to his
story.
He went to bed, he testified further.
and was not awakened until about II
o clock, when some policeman came in
and asked to see the revolver and
questioned him about the shooting of
The policemen left, he
said. and he went back to bed and
slept until o'clock the next morning,
when he was again awakened by the
police and prosecutors men and taken
to the Second Precinct.
At the Second Precinct he was
placed in a line and a man named
Riley was brought in. Riley was
asked to identify the men he saw go
ing toward McGoVern before he was
shot and he picked out Berlangierri
and touched several other men in the
line, Loponio asserted. Riley never at
any time identified him as being there,
I .oponio swore. Mary Barry was also
doubtful about Identifying him, the
witness said.
Relating the circumstances that led
To his statement to the police accus-
ing Berlangierri of the crime, winch
statement he no wdeclares false, Lo-
ponio said he made the statement
after Berlangerri had pointed him
out and said he did the shooting.
Berlangierri and lombard were
called into the room with him a
few hours before he made the state
ment, he declared, and Adubato said
to them: What did he do?' and
pointed at Loponio.
He shot the policeman on Seventh
avenue" the boys answered. accord
ing to Loponio's story. All the time
they were crying and hung their
heads. the defendant said. Then TO
retaliate for their accusation he ac-
cused Berlangierri.
He admitted further that he had
never seen black automatic revolver
in Berlangierri's possession, as he had
sworn at his two previous trials; that
Berlaingierri had never been in his
shop that night and that everything
he had said about the boy to the DO
lice and on the witness stand at the
other trials was untrue.
He protested that he was telling the
truth now, because he had been ad-
vised to do so by his Italian counsel,
j. Victor D'Aloia. Mr.. Teeple, who
defended him in the past and is still
one of his counsel, told him, he said
to tell the same story at the first and
second trial that he told the police.
Assistant Prosecutor Mott began
his cross examina ton of the defend
ant late in the afternoon and he had
not proceeded for when an adjourn
ment was taken till O'Clock this
morning. He continued his question
ing today.