Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-11-02
CHARGE BRIDE
NL|QU0RC CASE
Federal Court Hears Testi-
mony in Sands Case Die
tograph Was Used

TRENTON, Nov. with a die
tagraph installed in a room of the
Robert Treat Hotel in Newark, and
with an adjoining room filled with
FEDERAL government operatives, ac-
cording to his testimony, in the fed
eral court here yesterday. Harry e.
Sands, a prohibition agent of Wash
ington, declared he had been De id
$500 of a $4,000 bride by a num-
Der of Newark men to "soft-pedal'
testimony in 4 liquor ease in which
Sands was to have been a witness.
9 men who r being tried for
e alleged bribery are Louis C. La
Breque, Charles S. Shotwell, Joseph
Epifani, William Garner and Isidore
Simonelli, all of Newark. The lndict-
ment against the men charges that
they conspired between October /
1921 and November 3. 1921 10 induce
Sands to withhold testimony in a
liquor case and to commit perjury.
The entire afternoon was taken up
with direct testimony by Sands of
his knowledge of the alleged con-
spiracy.
Sands asserted hat after a lengthy
negotiation with the men involved,
he was given $500 in cash, but only
after two chacks and two notes Civ
en- him had had payment stopped
on them when they were presented
at the bank where they were drawn.
The acceptance of Sands of the cash
offered him occurred at the hotel in
November. last year., according to
his testimony. This sun represent
ed one-half the $751; 00 promised
him by the men accused, said Sands.
The alleged bribery was not only
FOR the nTrnnCn nf SIInnraGSinp aIi-
dence in a liquor cas- involving Sim
onelli and Edmund j.. LaBreque,
brother of the LaBreque being tried
today, but was also for the purpose
of inducing Sands, according to his
statement, not to interfere with large
shipments of liquor crossing the
state, to abstract certain fraudulent
permits for the withdrawal of Ii
quor from the files of the Newark
prohibition office, and to use his in
1uence in behalf of The men with
the United States district attorney
and prohibition headquarters at
Washington. In addition to the
money offered, Sands said he was to
reive one-ffth the profits of the
aRABreque warehouse. The witness
testified that Shotwell, who is a for
mer chief of the material disposal
III tllC Ill { WIZ SIdlsSllNo
at Washington, first preached the
subject of the supposed bribs by in
PRODUCING Simonelli who wished to
buy a two-thirds interest in the La
Breque warehouse. Simonelli de-
clared, according to Sands. that he
did not wish to put his money into
the warehouse while a case involving
1t vas pending.
Sands stated that one of the two
checks, which were for $500 and
for $1,000 drawn on the account of
Epifani, and which were not hon
ored, was taken by the agent to
Washington, where he had photo
stat copies made of it. He after
ward deposited it to his account in
a bank. He testified that the same
the two thirty-day notes and which
We're likewise unpaid. The notes
were also of $500 and $4,000 de-
nomination respectively. The rea-
son why Sands did not take both
checks and both notes to Washing
ton was that Shotwell asked at
least one-third of all money re-
ceived by Sands in the transactions
for acting as go-between, Sands
testified, n he asserted he gave
Shotwell the check and note for
$4,000.
When he found the check and
note were no good, Sands told Louis
LaBreque he was dissatisfied with
the way the business had turned
out, and LaBreque gave him a two
day note for $4,000. During the
next two days LaBreque gave the
federal agent $500 in cash.
The trial will continue today
L&hen the government will present
7libits in connection with the