New-York tribune., 1920-08-02
Wife Admits
Using Acid to
Slay Husband
Sought Since June 26,
When New Haven Labor
Leader Was Killed, She
Is Arrested in Street
Moved by Jealous Rage
Insists She Only Wanted
to DisGgure Him to
Keep Him for Herself

Mrs. Alexandra Sokolowsky, suspect
ed slayer Of her husband, Frank Soko-
iowsky, labor leader, who was found
dead from carbolic acid poisoning and
burns in his New Haven home on June
26, was arrested at 124th Street and
Eighth Avenue at o'clock yesterday
afternoon.
At Police Headquarters. an hour
later, Mrs. Sokolowsky is said to have
| admitted that she had poured carbolic
acid over her husbands face as he
slept but rs further quoted as saying
that she meant to disfgure him. and
not to kill him. Jealousy over Soko-
lowsky's alleged affections for another
woman prompted the act, Mrs. Soko-
lowsky told the police.
The active search for Mrs Sokolow-
SKY had been abandoned by the police
Of New York City, but in an inside
pocket Of his coat John Petrizzo, a de-
tective of the main Office division. had
carried circular, sent broadcast by
the New Haven police a few days after
the murder of Sokolowsky. This cir
cular bore picture of Mrs. Sokolow-
sky, also a printed description of the
woman.
Recognized by Picture
e retrlzzo, with his partner, Detective
Ncllno 80, Peppetto, was standing at
Elghth Avenue and 124th Street yester-
cay afternoon when a woman ap-
proached them. Petrzzo scanned the
wcmans face. then nudged his partner
and said he believed it was the Soko-
iowsky woman. He drew the circular
from his pocket and compared the
picture with the face Of the woman
approaching.
The comparison was perfect, save
sl'@1 the woman wore tortoise shell
glasses. Petrizzo halted her and after
ne had demanded her name and showed
her the circular the woman confessed.
might mi as we'll tell the truth" she
SAID that is my picture''
At Headquarters Mrs. SokolowsLv
made a detailed statement and dis,
closed that after she had fed New
raven, following the death of her hus.
hand, she returned to that citv and
Ivcd at 212 York Street, unmoiested
during the period that the New Haven
PONCE were using all their resources
to find her. 0'~''
Haven on the night Of the k;1l;ne. ir' 4arI anJ
came directly to New York. She Atu ra1
NAMED here for several days, then went
70 Canada: From Canada she returned
to New Haven. Quitting New Haven
LOT second time, after ten devs'
residence there, she came back to New
York, and since has been EMPLOYED as
a domestic in the home of a Harlem
family. 1'Si's'i
Blames "Other Woman"
Mrs. Sokolowsky contradicted the
rumors that her husbands assassina-
5ion was the result of plot nstigated
py .labor's enemies, and is quoted as
saying that the mans attentions to
woman who lives in Brooklyn we're
solely responsible for the tragedy.
In her statement to Headouarters
detectives Mrs: Sokolowsky said she
was twentyeight years old and Rus
sian born. Her figure is small and she
has the black hair and black ewes of
the Slavic type. She said:
My husband and were married in
June, 1914, and l was living in Brook
lyn at the time. We have one daughter.
Aldona, five years DID, For the first
happily with my husband. After that
ne began to stay away from home.
His excuse always was business.
began to fear that he was going with
other women, for he would stay away
.or week or two weeks at time.
We moved to New Haven on June
3, 1920. We established home there
at 25 Beers Street The day after we
had got settled l found two letters
IN my husbands pocket. They were
written by q woman in Brooklyn
They were written in English and
couldn't read them, but had a woman
friend read them and she said they
were love letters.
On June my husband went to
New York and was sure he was 60
ing to see that woman. We had car
bolic acid in the house and, seeing
the bottle, l thought of plan to dis
figure him. He was handsome. l
figured if | would disfigure his face,
he wouldn't be attractive to other
women and could keep him home.
Called on Woman
~ didn't decide to act then, but the
carholic acid was on my mind. Two
weeks later he bought an automobile
and we went to New York in it. He
wanted to go a:one, but insisted that
he should take me.
"On a second trip we made to New
York in the car ne called on the woman
in Brooklyn and took me along. He
pretended they were only friends, but
the next day, after we were home,
found another letter written by that
woman. l had heard from man
friend that my husband intended to
divorce me, and after | had found still
another letter from this same woman,
I determined to do something.
"On the night of June 25 he was out
of the house. He got home at 1870
o'clock on the morning of June &C.
He was very cross and told me to stay
away from him. H& went to bed, and
at about 8 oclocKs in the morning,
while he was sleeping soundly, l got
the bottle Of carbolic acid, poured the
poison into a glass and tossed it into
his face. But l didn't mean to kill
him. l would rather have killed my
self than to have killed him.
"He jumped out of bed when had
thrown the acid at him. ran from
the house, screaming I returned a
few minutes later and found him lying
on the floor. l called to him, but there
was no answer A man came to the
door and said he was a doctor. He
looked at my husband and told me that
he was dead
Held for New Haven Police