The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1915-04-22
Five Young Men Admit to
the Police Breaking Into
Many Stores in the City.
LONG A PUZZLE TO THE POLICE

The mystery that has surrounded a
half dozen petty burgIaries in Keno
sha was cleared up late Monday night
when Chief of Police Owen 0 Hare ar
rested Philip Unit, George Clifford,
and William Stife, boys ranging in age
from sixteen to twenty years and later
in the night the three boys confessed
to entering six places in the business
district of the city. This morning
Emery Dodge, colored, and Frank Muir
ply, two others alleged to be mem
bers Of the boy band of burglars
were taken into custody at Wau-
kegan and they were brought back
to Kenosha late this afternoon for
hearing in the municipal court.
For the past three weeks stories of
petty burglaries have been coming to
the police department.. All of the cases
appeared to be the work of amateurs
in criminal methods, but the police Of
ficers were not able to get any trace
Of the people connected with them.
On April LIST the shoe shop of Joseph
Balok on Main street, was entered and
a small sum of money taken. Later
| the burglars looted the shoe repair shop
of J.. L. Goodale. Then they went into
the offices of Oscar Silberscmidt on
! Exchange street. The German barber
shop was entered on Sunday night and
on the same night the store of the s.
and HI. trading stamp company on Wis
consin street was victim of the mau-
RAIDERS. Nothing was said in regard
to the last named burglery and the
chief went on the case himself. On
Monday night just after eleven clock
he noticed young Unit and young
Clifford on the street. The two boys
appeared to be watching the chief and
when they separated young Clifford
went into an alley off Church street.
The chief followed him and took him
into custody and took him to the police
Office where after considerable ques-
tioning he admitted his guilt and i'm
plicated the other boys. In the mean
time Dodge and Murphy had evidently
XIV Wiilu VI AnC oil CS6 VI SlinO1u duQ
they fed from the city. It was sup
posed that they had gone to Lake &C.
neva, but early this morning mes
sage sent to Waukegan resulted in
their being arrested there. Some of
the boys had been connected with all
of the burglaries while others had been
with the 'Ftgang" at only one of the
nightly excursions. The boys were in
Jail Monday night and this morning
District Attorney Drury took up the
consideration of the case.
In court this morning it was decIar-
ed that nothing would be done with
the cases until after the two boys had
been brought back from Waukegan.
Suggestions Of parole have been made
to the court, but he declined to take
any action in the cases until the full
facts in the matter had been laid be-
fore him. 1t is claimed by the boys
that they were led into the burglary
| by reading stories of boy burglars
They admitted that the burglaries had
not brought them great financial pro-
fit and 1T is probable that the total
amount that they secured in all of
their night raids would not exceed
twenty-five dollars. The booty secured
was for the most part small change
| taken in the stores and other places
The stories of the different boys show
| ed that they had a full understanding
as to the division of the tEswag' and
they went at the burglaries with a
business method that would have done
credit to men who had been long in
the business. Nearly all Of the boys
are school boys.
1t is said that two of the boys had
been arrested az suspects on former
occasions.