Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1919-05-24
POLICE ROUT SUSPECTS
FROM BED, TAKE
THEM TO JAIL
TWO ARE AT LARGE
YOUTHS ACCUSED OF STORING
STOLEN GOODS IN IA SALE
JUNkMAN'S BARN FLEE CITY
DEALER is HIMSELF CAUGHT
IN TOLLS.

With the arrest after an all-night
roundup of five youths and message
burning up the wires notifying police
departments of three cities 20 be on
the lookou, for two more, persistent
rumors which have been in circulation
the past four or five days fastening
blame for the Megafiin shoe robbery
upon local talent come to head this
morning The supects in jail are
Harry Coulter, II
Clarence Leopold, %.
Arthur knutson, 26,
William Love, 81
George Koenig, 36, La Sale
Two others, said by the officials to
be ring leaders and identified by a
La Sale junkman as the pair who
brought the shoes to his place Of bust
ness for storage are still at large,
Their names are given out by the po-
lice as:
Joseph Kelly, %.
Gus Gcbhardt, 2G.
The former it is claimed was seen
to leave the city this morning while
the latter, according to police reports
has been out of town for several
days
Junkman Brought to Ottawa.
Solomon RomenOfski, La Sale junk
dealer. with whom the shoes were
stored, was brought to Ottawa today
and Immediately gave bond on a
charge OF receiving stolen property
Romenofski was gotten out Of jail
by his brother, Moses Romenofski
While under examination by Sher
iff Ayers Romenofsk was positive in
his statement that Ksly and Geb
hardt brought the shoes to him Sat
urday night at La Sale and asked
permission to have the mstored in
his barn He said he knew both the
young men, having met them on sew
cral occasions before He identified
Gebhardt by very noticeable lame
ness. altho he said he did not know
him by name.
koenia In Tolls.
The arrest of Kocnig was brough
about at the Vendome hotel where h,
resides What his relationship to thu
robbery is. the officials are trying t
uncover, but it is reported that tht
boxes of shoes were stored at th,
Vendome, before being sent to Romcn
ofsk for safekeeping. Koenig, VIII
formerly lived in Ottawa. associateJ
with the crowd caught in the pOlic
raid as possible perpetrators of tn
robbery.
May Be Some Innocent
While the police and sheriff's onic
was we'll armed with suspicious whic
connected at least four Of the youn
men with the Megaffin robbery, ther
is a general belief that one or mayh
two of the men now held at the count
Jail may not have been "in" on tn
$3.50 robbery of May l6. when approx
mately 100 pairs of mems high price
shoes were removed from the shelve
Of the La Sale street store, bl
neither Sheriff Ayers nor States A
torney Wiley are going to take an
chances in ordering releases unit
edcn one OF tne lOuI mas fttu give
thorough croSs-examining in II
sweating process so successful anon
delivers for criminal facts. After eaC
of the suspected youths has had
chance to tell his story AID explain
detail where he was on the night
the robbery it then will he plenty
time TO order released those who Il
officials are unable to connect Wi
the burglary.
Hot Tip From La Sale.
The first tip which indicated Il
Megaffin burglary was about to
given plausible solution came
midnight in a telephone message fro
Night Patrolman McQuade of
Sale.
Shoes Found by Police.
First intimation that there was
police mystery in La Sale came la
night when Frank Reinke, owner
an oil station, reported to Officer N
Quade, that he had boxes Of snoes