New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1915-12-29
SILK THIEVES GET
PRISON SENTENCES
CONVICTED OF BURGLARY IN:
THIRD DECREE. ALIBI NOT
ESTABLISHED.
PLEAD GUILTY TO LARCENY AND
ARE GIVEN INDETERMiNATE
SENTENCES.

The trial Of Geo. Moore and Jos. H.
Wilson, the store robbers who broke into
the Friedl store at Gibben and stole
silks and other merchandise amounting
to over $4OO on November 18th, was
held before Judge Morrison in district
court last week at Gaylord. The grand
jury brought two indictments against
them on charges of third degree burglary
and first degree larceny. The first
charge was tried Monday and the case
continued all day Tuesday.
After the selection of the jury the
state presented its case, County At
torney A. L. Young calling upon Geo.
Oswald, Jos. Friedl, Wenzel Friedl, VIM.
Guggisberg, Harvey Guggisberg, Earl
Johnson, VIM. Dahlgren, Arthur Schempf
and Oscar Bengston of Gibbon and VIM.
Sundberg of Winthrop as witnesses.
The evidence offered was much the
same as that given in the preliminary
hearing held in justice court on the day
the robbers were captured. In addition
thereto Oscar Bengston testified that he
saw two men get off the evening passen-
ger train of the night of Nov. IL, on
which he was a passenger, on the side
away from the depot, though he could
not identify them. VIM. Sundberg of Win
throp identified Geo. Moore as one of those
to whom he had sold ticket on the
morning following the last robbery at
Winthrop.
The defendants had summoned two
brakemen as witnesses, but they would
not testify as the robbers desired and
were therefore not called to. the witness
stand. The defendants tried to prove
an alibi and wanted the brakeman to
testify that they had been put off at
Fairfax that morning by freight going
east.
Both Moore and Wilson took the
stand and presented an alibi which took
them from Chicago and Omaha to Sioux
City, Watertown, Morton and Fairfax.
According to their story they then
walked from Fairfax to Gibbon and were
in the corn field on private business when
the posse from town came to capture
them. They claimed no knowledge of
the hay stack and suit cases. They were
able to make the accounts of their travels
correspond quite well, but in number
OF instances became muddled upon cross
examination. They claimed that they
had never been in Gibbon, nor at VIM
throp.
Their evidence, no doubt, caused some
impression on the jury for they de-
liberated three hours on the case before
coming to an agreement. They then
returned verdict of guilty of burglary
in the third degree, the maximum sem
tence for which is five years in prison.
The second charge was taken up
Wednesday morning but was quickly
disposed of as both robbers pleaded
guilty. The judge then sentenced them
to an indeterminate term in state
prison with a maximum Of ten years
and postponed his sentence in the first
charge, making the longest term which
they can be committed to the state prison
fifteen years.
County Attorney A. L. Young had
charge of the case in behalf of the State
and Atty. O. S. Vesta was appointed by
the Judge to act in behalf of the defen-
dants.
The robbers were taken to Saltwater
Thursday. In the testimony offered
Moore gave his birthplace as Dublin,
Ireland. He is not married. Wilson
was born in Aurora, Illinois. His father
and mother died when he was child and
he was brought up by an uncle in Cali
fornia and came east this year. He also
is not married.