The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1915-10-04
OFFICERS HUNT
FOR MURDERERS
Of LUTHER RABER
Clues are Found Which May
Help to Solve the
Mystery.
MAN IS SHOT TO DEATH
Coroner's Jury May Meet
Tomorrow-Body is
Inferred.

County officer5 under tho personal
leadership of Sheriff c. D. Conaway,
are busy running to earth clues which
they believe will solve the mystery
OF the murder of Luther Raber. aged
IS years, whose body was found on
toot-path leading through the woods
on the snodgrass farm, Mods Run,
two miles from Warrington, last Sat.
urdar.
The completion of the autopsy. the
interment of the body in the Gene.
terry near Begun yesterday afternoon.
the imSaneling of a coroner's jury,
which will probably complete its In
vestigation tomorrow. and the conc!u.
sion by county officers that robbery
was the motive, is summary Of the
developments in the latest Marion
county murder sensation.
The body, which was found face
downwards In the weeds. was not
touched by the persons who discoy-
cred It until late Saturday afternoon
and no attempt was made at identi.
Rcation until the arrival OF Sheriff
Conaway and Coroner Frank a. Lloyd
shortly before dusk Saturday. The
investigation by the officers revealed
that Raber came TO his death as a re-
suit OF bullet wounds in the head. Two
bullets entered back Of the rir>-~ ear,
one passing through the skull and out
on the opposite side, and tho other
glancing upwards. Tie third finger
on Raber's left hand was cut by a
bullet and there was bullet hole In
his hat.
The last persons who saw Rabar
alive, as far as the officers. have
learned. we're his mother and a sister.
whom he visited Thursday afternoon.
When he left the house about O'Clock
according TO statements by the wom'
en-. he carried about $3.50 in his pock'
cts. Most Of this amount was in eur.
rency, but there were two twenty.dol-
lar gold pieces and one ten'dollar gold
piece. This money as well as gold
watch and a revolver which Raber
had when he left home are missing
The holster for the revolver, however,
was found in a pocket. A safety pin
with which the pocket In which the
money was carried. was found near
the hody.
The theory that Raber was shot with
his own revolver is not regarded Sc
riously by either the coroner or other
county officers. Raber was strong,
muscular, well built man and there
we're no evidences OF a scuftle In the
vicinity. The officers say that II is
probable that the murderer approach
ed stealthily and used his own weap'
on. shooting Raher without warning.
The murderer. II Is believed. then took
Raber's revolver along with the 9TH
er loot.
The coroner's jury impaneled to in
vestigate the case, includes j. u
Charlton. Howard Athy. Lawrence
Huffman, Brice Jolliff. o. L. Bell anu
C. c. Wells.
The Raher family is well known to
the Marion county officers. Anna
Wilson, sister OF the murdered man.
is confined in the county jail as tne
result OF arson charges preferred al
ter barn near Pennington. owned ny
Leroy sturm had been burned. Jo'
seph Raber. a brother, was recently
released from the state penitentiary.
Luther Raber, the man murdered,
and Lawrence. brother, got into
trouble in waynesburg. Pa, several
years ago, when they we're said to
have been carrying about $l,6Oo IN
their pockets. Later they were ac.
cused Of robbing a store In Wetzel
county. after binding and gagging the
merchant.
Raber's body was found scarcely 100
feet from the spot where a Syrian
peddler was murdered 10 years ago.
and there Is believed to be good
ground for the deduction that both
crimes were committed by the same
person.