The Liberal democrat. [volume] (Liberal, Kan.) 1911-1924, 1917-06-28
CRATER CAUGHT
BY MEADE MAN
Offered to Sell Quarter Worth
$4,000 for S6OO-Had
Forged Deed

One of the shrewdest and at the
same time as crooked proposition
that has been discovered and brot to
justice for many day, has just
been made known through the eff
forts of Louis Boehler, cashier of the
Meade State Bank. One man is al
IeIspsJ sq4 40 lssIIe Ispun 6pesI
authorities in San Francisco charged
with using the mails for fraud and
there is possibility of an organized
gang of crooks being run down.
About six weeks ago Mr. Boehler
received letter from one o. H.
Bond, of Imperial, California, asking
what quarter section sw u 8-33-29
was worth and if he could find buy
er for this land. Mr.. Boehler re-
piled that he was not familiar with
the land but thought it was billy or
sandy, but asked the man to put
price ON the land and he would see
, what could be done about selling the
property. Bond answered that for
cash he would sell the land for 5000.
Mr.. Boehler knew that there was not
a quarter in the county but what was
easily worth this, so he wired the
man to send on the deed and papers.
In the meantime Mr.. Boehler and
Mr.. Harper motored over to the land
and found that it was easily worth
$4,000, and to the best knowledge
obtainable belonged to Russell A.
Leak and no one knew of the land
having been sold. The bargain was
so good that Mr. Boehler "smelt a
mouse" and began a little quiet in
vestigation. A son-in-law of Leak
who lives near here, said that he had
just received letter from his faith
in-law asking him to look after hav-
ing crop put out on the land, and
if he had sold the land he had done
so in the last few days.
By this time the deed had arrived
1t was drawn up in due form and had
been acknowledged in Johnson coun-
| ty, Nebraska. Certain that fraud
was being attempted, Mr.. Boehler
made trip to where Mr.. Leak is now
living mar Pratt and learned that
Mr. Leak had not conveyed the land
or offered it for sale. The deed was
a forgery from start to finish.
Armed with this information and
the forged papers Mr.. Boehler put
the matter before the u. S. Attorney
at Kansas City who referred him to
| the postoffice Inspector. AS soon as
the postoffice Inspector had the facts
before him he wired the San Fran
cisco authorities to arrest Bond at
Imperial, and in less than forty-eight
hours the man was in the custody of
the federal authorities charged with
using the mails for fraud
The man Bonds real name prov
ed to be Lee Minner, and he is
thought to be one of an organized
band of criminals operating out of
Omaha, Kansas City, and San Fran
cisco. There is little doubt but what
the man will be convicted and there is
possibility that some of his associ-
ates will be rounded up and brought
to justice.
The authorities advised Mr.. Boeh-
Ter that this was only one of the
gangs many crimes, but this was the
first where they had evidence enough
for conviction.
Mr.. Boehler is entitled to a great
deal of credit for bringing the mat
ter to the attention of the Federal
department and he was put to con-
siderable expense and loss of time in
running the proposition down, but
inasmuch as he has stopped at least
one mans crookedness, he feels am
ply repaid for his trouble.-Meade
Globe.