Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-07-25
CLUE TO IDENTITY
Of trunk VICTIM
FOUND IN LETTERS
Expressman Involves South
Amerieans-TraH Leads
to Pennsylvania.
By tho Associated Peess.

BY tho Associated Press. --.'..' 500
NEW YORK, July 24.-Clues obtained
today from handwriting contained in a
series Of letters which passed between
Detroit and New York are expected to
reveal the identity Of the woman, whose
rputilated. body was found in a trunk
here. YESTERDAY, the police investigating
the case announced tonight. v 49,.
The letters were proudced by An
drew ]. Branic, q local expressman.
Branic also told the officials OF two
South Americans for whom he stored
later ordered the trunk shipped to
e. Leroy, care Of the Y. M. c. A" in
Detroit. The name Of Leroy is that
OF the persons reported as having
occupied an apartment at No. los
Harper street, Detroit, the address on
the trunk in which the body was
found yesterday.
Letter ON June IL.
The most recent letter to which the
police attached Importance was one
received by Branic June IL, from q
man in Detroit. 1t was signed "A
"A. Tatum" and ordered him to get
trunk sent from there, June 10. He
tried to locate the trunk, but was
not able to find it.
It was last January Branic told
ths police, that he received the letter
Leroy. That letter. he said, was in
the same handwriting as the Tatum
letter, but was signed o. J.. Woods,
the name which the expressman said
was used by one of the two South
Americans. These men. according to
Branlc, were known to him first as
A. J. Fernandez and Joseph Yanez.
Aaked tn TIolA T,u-u,
Fernandez later told him he was ar.
rested under the name of o. ].
Woods in connection with an auto
mobile accident in Brooklyn, involy-
ing the death of man. He" was re-
leased on bail and left New york.
Branie received a letter from him in
Detroit in December, 1919, and in
July, 1919, was asked to get a trunk
and hold II. until Woods wanted it.
This trunk was ordered sent to Leroy
Throughout all of the correspon-
dence with A. A. Tatum. o. J. Woods
ana T. LEROY. Branic declared, the
handwriting was the same. -
DR.. Charles Norris, city medical ex-
aminer, reported today that an exami-
nation of the. dead "woman's brain
IaHed TO show any trace of an anaes-
thetic having been administered be-
nation was made to determine If she
had died as the result of an opera
Give Up Another Clue. 49,
DETROIT. Mich. July. 24.-The
trunk in which the body of an I'M
identified woman was found in New
York was received by Detroit police
saturday evening. Shortly after it's
arrival detectives assigned to the case
hurried out on what they said was
q new lead. They refused to divuIge
Its import. 1t is understood that the
new clue came from New York in a
long-distance telephone conversation
between Detroit and New York police
late today.
The belief that the murdered wom-
an might have been Katherine Dan,
twenty-year-old Canonsburg, Pa,
girl. was abandoned by police here to-
day She was said to have come to
Detroit with Alfonso Talifrone. an
italian, who was later arrested for
alleged violation Of the Mann act. He
was arrested here June 16, and itswas
reported that the girl, Katherine Dan,
had not been seen for several days
prior to his arrest. Police today, how
ever, stated that relatives of the, Dan
girl had received letters from, her
written after June IS. The trunk
was shipped from Detroit June 10.
&c.. Arrested In Same House.
WASHINGTON, Pa, July 24-Au-
thorities of Washington county, Penn
sylvania. announced here today that
they were making efforts to ascer-
tain if the body of the woman found
in trunk in New York yesterday is
that of Katherine Dan, aged twenty
years, who went to Detroit early in
June and has not been heard from
since. -~..s.- 49,, -. =
Ida Dan, sister of the missing girl
and Alphonso Talifrone are prisoners
in Jail here. and are being held in con-
nection with the disappearance of
katherine Dan. Talifrone is charged
with violation of the Mann act, and
completely in the disappearance of the
Dan girl. The sister is being held for
further investigation. u
In statement issued today Ida
Dan said that she believed her sister
is dead. whether she is the girl
they, found in the trunk in New York,
wouldn't venture to say" she added
Talifrone said he had not heard of
the missing girl for some time.
County authorities claim that de-
tails of the finding of the body in
the trunk tally with facts and dates
the disappearance of
Katherine Dan. She left her home at
Canonsburg, Pa, early in June for
Detroit and was accompanied by
Talifrone. authorities said. The lat
ter was arrested in Detroit. and
brought to this city, but efforts to
find the girl in Detroit failed Coun-
ty detectives. who Investigated the
that los Harper street, Detroit, the
address found in the trunk at New
York, was the apartment house in
which they located Talifrone and
found articles of the missing girls
clothing.