Willmar tribune., 1919-04-30
JUDGE SENTENCES TWO
!, MEN TO REFOR ORMATORY
One a Smooth Confidence Man,
the Other a Bungling Hog
Thief. j..

A professional crook and one of the
cleverest confidence men ever operat-
ing in this meek o'the woods" drift
ed into Willmar one day week before
last and pulled of some of his nifty
at the St. Cloud reformatory.
It seems that he had gone to the
Farm Bureau and applied for a job
as farm hand. He got in touch with
Fred Norling Of Whitef1eld who had
put in request for man. NorHng
came in to get him, but owing to the
bad roads they both stayed in town
until the next day, rooming together
in the hotel over night. Norling fur
nished him with new suit and other
clothing at the Willmar stores to the
amount of $7S before they drove out
to the farm. Sc we'll did the sharper
know his game that he managed to get
a considerable amount of money from
NOrling. The next morning somebody
called up Mr.. Norlng by telephone
from Willmar and inquired If there
was man working for him by name
Of Earl Beemer. When given to know
such was the case, he said that there
was telegram stating that Beemer's
father in Iowa was very sick and want
ed his son to come home. Beemer
then asked to be taken to Raymond
which Norling agreed to do. However
the latter now began to smell a rat"
and while his "hired man" was out
hitching up he called up Sheriff Bonde
and explained the situation. The
The sheriff agreed to meet them on
ioh ho nd hn
crook in charge. The fellow, Roy Lee
by name, with whom Beemer had ar
ranged to phone out the fake message
about his father being sick, was also
taken charge of by the sheriff and
held for states witness.
Beemer was brought before the
Municipal court where he plead guilty
and asked for sentence, which was
given him by Judge Qvale of the Dis
trict court. He was given an inde-
terminate term at the State Reforma-
tory.
Beemer who was % years of age
makes no bones about that he is a
professional crook and has led the life
of a card shark since he was 16 years
of age. He said he had already got
ten some money from some of the
wise young "sports" in Willmar. He
said that this however was only the
second time he had been arrested in
any of his undertakings.
He stated that Mr.. Bonde was one
of the very best sheriffs in the state;
and the latter has returned the COM
pliment by calling Beemer one of the
most affable and smoothest crooks
he had ever had anything to do with
Ernest Berglund of Harrison, ar.
rested for being implicated in the
stealing of six hogs from a neighbor
was brought before the municipal
court Monday of last week on the
charge of criminally receiving stolen
property. He waived examination and
was bound over to the grand jury.
The week before he plead guilty to
the charge of grand larceny in the
second degree and was bound over.
Berglund was also charged with
having furnished liquor to a minor,
for which offence he was fined $25
and costs.
Willard Helpinstine, the young farm
hand from Harrison who was arrested
some time ago for stealing six pigs
from Simon Simonson of Irving plead
guilty before Judge Qvale April o.,
and was sentenced to the State Re-
formatory on an indeterminate sent
ence, to which institution he was tax.
en- last Wednesday by Sheriff Bonde