The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1919-04-25
CAPTAIN WELLS TELLS STORY
OF HOW IT WAS DONE
HELP SOUTHSTATE TOWN
0watonna Police We're Assisted
In Recovery of Stolen
Articles


police department probably will
await the return next week of Com
missioner McColl of the department
of police safety. from st. Louis.
Mr. McColl, with Commissioners
Keller, Farmsworth and Clancy. left
Wednesday might for st. Louis to at
tend the annual meeting of the Mis-
sissippi Valley Waterways associa.
ton.
Before leaving he and Mayor Hodg :
sen and Paul N Myers, president of
the st. Paul Association held a con-
ference to discuss the meeting at
Owatonna last Saturday.
The men of Owatonna who dis
cussed police matters with the ST.
Paul delegation indicated that they
will not recede from their position
that they think crooks are being pro-
tected by the st. Paul police. They
were assured by Mr.. Myers and May
or Hodgson of st. Pauls cooperation
in stopping crime raids into SOUTH
ern Minnesota. They asked for tan
gible evidence of such CO. operation.
Recital of Sleuth Work.
At the conference here after the
meeting Mr.. Myers suggested that
the separate charges made by the
Owatonna delegation at the original
hearing before the st. Paul associa
tion be tabulated and that brief be
prepared showing what the st. Paul
police department had done in the
way of CO. operating with Southern
TO lie rA
hending criminals.
The brief to be prepared by the
police department probably will take
UP the robbing of the Fitzgerald store
in Owatonna. The charge was made
by Owatonna men that silk stolen
from this store was brought to ST.
Paul.
About the same time as this rob-
berry the Evans BelGen shirt factory
in Minneapolis was robbed.
George w. Wells captain of de-
tectives. today told of his efforts to
get evidence that would land the
men who took the silk from these
places He said that he learned that
an unnamed business man in st. Paul
had a dozen silk shirts made here
some time after these robberies. He
suggested that Owatonna officers
start investigating the source of the
silk for these shirts.
Another Tack in the Race.
Another tack in the race to get the
thieves led him to storage house on
Rice street beyond the end of the car
line. Captain Wells opened a box
that was stored there and found
bolts of silk with the price tags at
tached
These tags were identified by him
self and another man with their mi
tials and then sent to Owatonna. He
was informed later that these tags
We're not the ones attached to the
silk taken from the Fitzgerald store.
The tags were then sent to the Bel
den Evans company.
As another evidence of co-opera-
tion with Southern Minnesota cities
Mr.. Wells cited the case Of the ar
rest of young man in a city south
of st. Paul. He said that he sent
Rertillion photographs of the man to
the police there and told them they
hao in their hands real criminal.
Mr.. Wells said that this man after
wards got five years in prison.
Recites Mankato Case.
The arrest of two boys from South
ern Minnesota who took two Liberty
Bonds and currency from a man in
St Paul was cited by Mr.. Wells One
Of the boys went to Mankato and
bought a new outfit of clothing with
one of the bonds.
Mr.. Wells said that he aided in the
arrest of the youngster by learning
hist hereabouts from letter written
to girl friend downstate. The local
police learned of the boys infatuation
for the girl and watched her until
the letter came.
The boys father came here and of.
fered to make the money loss good
and turn over two of his Liberty
bonds rather than have his son go to
Jail. Through the efforts of the ST.
Paul police the Liberty bond ex-
changed for clothes in Mankato was
returned to it's owner and the clothes
were sent back to the Mankato
dealer.
The Auto Cases.
Discussing cooperation in auto
mobile thief cases. Mr.. Wells told d
story of a new Buick car being stolen
from man living near Owatonna
it had been driven but forty three
miles. The car went to cabin near
Shakopee, where some men and
women were living close to nature.
Captain Wells said he notified
Shakopee authorities to go seize the
occupants of the hut and the car.
When the officers got there they
found the car had been driven off to-
ward Minneapolis.
While on the scene they arrested
two men and put them in JAIL Ac-
corGing to CAPTAIN Wells the Shake
pee officers then called him, asking
what to do with their captives.
Captain Wells told them to release
their prisoners, as they did not have
the car as evidence. The car was
driven about $50 miles and was in ST.
Cloud at one time. The police next
heard of it as being in a garage here
with one wheel smashed.
The owner of the car was sum =
moned here. At the garage he found
the numbers had been filed f. He
said he was not able positively to
identity of the car.
Captain Wells Got Car Identified.
Captain Wells then told him to-
summon a mechanic that had done
some work on the car. In the mean
time Captain Wells said certain po-
lice officers here contended thar the
n -