Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1919-07-31
JANET W|LK|NSON'S
MURDERER FOUND
Thomas Fitzgerald, Hotel Watch
man, ConfeSses the Crime.
CHOKES THE GIRL TO DEATH
Lures Child to His Room and Stays
Her When She Makes Outcry-
Buries Little Body Under
Coal Pile.

aid murdered six-year-old Janet Will
kinSOn.
He enticed her into his fiat with
candy. He made advances. She
screamed. He chOked her to death.
Then he buried her body in the coal
pile in the basement of the building.
He confessed the crime to Acting
Lieut.. Fred Howe at the Chicago ave-
nue. station, where he had been held
since l a. m. Wednesday, II hours af-
ter Janet vanished. Then he helped
the police to find the corpse
His confession came abruptly at the
end of the most remarkable grilling in
the history of crime. 1t lasted through
out the entire night. It was a verita-
BILE fourth degree" in which psychol
ogy played a leading part.
A Battle of Mind Shocks.
A detective dressed as priest had
tried to induce Fitzgerald to confess.
The man said he had nothing to tell.
Tiny hands, taken from dolls, were
laid before him on a table in the dimly
lighted basement of the police station
as an appeal to his feelings. This
failed
The police even took off his glasses
because he seemed to lose his cOmpOs-
ure without them. But he bowed his
head and refused to talk.
He was not physically abused, but
the manhunters, feeling the end was
near, pounded his muddled and sleep
less brain with every mental shock
they could devise.
Kind words, threats, thousands of
questions and suggestions were fired
at him with machine gun regularity.
The ordeal had endured eight hours
when he called for Acting Lieutenant
Howe.
"Send Mr.. Howe down here" he said
simply. Then he confessed every
thing.
81 was sitting in the window at ten
minutes after twelve Tuesday when
saw Janet coming towards the build
ing" he told the lieutenant. "When
she came up the steps to the landing at
my doorway I said to her, 'Dollie,
would you like some candy?
"She hesitated. Then I picked her
up in my arms and carried her into my
apartment.
81 Clicked Her to Death.
"She started to scream. Before !
knew it or realized what / was DOING
I grabbed her by the throat and chOked
her to death.
"Having realized what 1 had done,
then dressed, as at the time I was in
my bathrobe. I then took Janet's body
in my arms, going down the front steps
to the basement, where l buried the
body under a pile of COAL"
After signing formal confession he
led the police officials, under direction
of Acting Chief Alcock, to the base
ment OF the flat building at 112 and ia
East Superior street, where he lives,
and there pointed out the spot where
Janet's body was concealed.
He showed no emotion as the police
chief lifted big Jumps of coal from the
corpse. Only once he betrayed weak
ness. This was when several men in
the throng gathered outside the build
ing shouted: "Hang him! Hang him J"
On the third floor above Mr. and
Mrs. John S. Wilkinson, parents Of the
dead girl, waited in awful suspense.
They did not know of his confession.
But the crowd below presaged impor-
tant developments.
After the body had been removed
from the basement the police broke
the news to them. Mrs. Wilkinson fell
to the floor in a faint. Wilkinson NUT
tered a prayer that the slayer would
meet death for the murder.
Prosecutors Swing Into Action.
A few hours later the wheels of Cook
county's prosecuting machinery were
in motion.
"Red Necktie Jimmy" O'Brien, muir
der case specialist of the states attor-
ney's office, was called in.
He had Fitzgerald removed, under
heavy guard, to the criminal courts
building, where the murder story was
repeated in detail before official ste
nographers.
Coroner Peter M. Hoffman person
ally impaneled jury at Caroll's I'M
dertaking rooms and opened an in
quest over the body.
Acting Chief Alcock and others de-
manded an immediate special session
of the legislature to enact laws provid-
ing for farm colony for detectives of
the Fitzgerald type.