Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-01-19
ADMITS He KILLED
MISE. N. R|DDELL
Wife of Patrick O'DonneIl,
Confessed Slayer, Estab-
fishes Partial Alibi.
ACCUSED MAN IS JAILED

NEW YORK, January 1S.-Patrick
ODonnell of this city, arrested in Yonk-
ers today after he had confessed to the
murder of Elizabeth Mary Riddell, a
stenographer, in the borough of Queens
Wednesday evening, tonight was lodged
in the Jamaica Jail.
After his confession of the murder
O'Donnell's wife apparently established
an alibi for him. She stated that he
had been taken i'll Tuesday and that
she had accompanied him to his place
Of employment here Wednesday night
and was with him there at the time the
murder was committed. Officials of the
company employing O'Donnell said the
time clock substantiated her story.
O'Donnell is an epileptic his wife de-
clared
I'm my opinion, we have tho right
man. 1 do not believe he is taking"
said Assistant District Attorney Hazel
ton of Queens county in announcing to-
night that ODonneI was being held on
homicide charge. He knows too
much about the murder to have gained
his information from the newspapers, as
we at first thought to be the case. He
knew things that had never been pub
lished."
Arrested Man Confesses.
O'Donnell, thirty years old. confessed
in court at Yonkers after his arrest on
charge of vagrancy, that he was guilty
of the murder.
Questioned as to his possible knowl-
edge of the Riddell murder. he broke
down and confessed to the police,
saying he had killed the. young
woman with an iron bar after she
had fought him and made an outcry.
Confession Reduced to Writing.
Later O'Donnell signed a confession
detailing how he had committed the
murder and clearing discrepancies he
had made in his earlier statement. He
said he lived in New York with his
wife and two children and went to
Richmond Hill on the night of the
murder, after visiting his fathers
home in Brooklyn. ~,
He encountered Miss Riddell, who
was unknown to him., in wooded
section of Richmond Hill. He had
previously armed himself with sec
ton of iron pipe and struck the young
woman on the head with it. He then
dragged her, unconscious, into the
woods where later he left her dead
ODonnell identified piece of iron
pipe picked up near the scene of the
tragedy as the weapon he had used
The police expressed a belief that
ODonne1l was telling the truth, but
asserted his story conflicted in some
important particulars with the facts
of the crime as discovered by the
New York police. This was particular
ly evident in regard to the time the
crime was committed. Other of his
statements fitted into the probability.
80
While her supposed slayer was con-
Tossing his crime in Yonkers court to-
day the funeral of Miss Elizabeth Mary
Riddell was being held in a Roman
Catholic church in the borough OF
the murder, sand her home, a weH-to-
!, do section of Richmond Hill
Miss Riddel1, who was high school
graduate was struck down last
Wednesday night while on her way
home from work in a Manhattan in
surance office. Alumnae and FELLOW
employees of the victim attended the
services in body.
The police were confronted by an
other murder mystery today when
the body of Winfield Scott Philhower,
an electrical engineer, ffty-six years
old, was found in his apartment in East
head were evidently made by q black
jack and a saber found lying beside
the body. The saber belonged to
collection of old weapons in a cabinet
in Philhower's rooms.
There apparently had been violent
struggle between the engineer and his
murderer.