Evening star., 1922-06-25

an outbreak of vice. Evil resorts
sprang up in the poorer quarters of
the town coincident with the influx
of an army of criminal hangers-on.
Conditions got SO bad that finally
there was a public scandal and a re-
form wave. Now, during this period.
there lived in Akron a Sicilian who
bore the rather significant name of
Rosano Borgia.
This man kept a disreputable house
in the slums of Akron. He made much
money. Then one day the police
raided his place. Borgia was indig-
nant Another raid followed. and
several others. Borgia's anger
reached a pitch of mad fury against
the police. In this state of mind he
conceived a project worthy of his
name. The project was nothing less
than the determination of the Akron
police force. He offered a reward of
$3.50 to any one who killed a police
man,
This proclamation was not. of
course. published in the public prints.
but circulated among the gunmen OF
the underworld. A band OF six ST.
Gillian desperadoes resolved to win the
reward. They killed four men. duly
collected the blood money from Bor-
gia, and were bent on continuing to
earn such money Indefinitely. The
man who had acted as lookout. Tony
Manfredi, had gone to New York to
feast on his share of the tak:ngs. and
had blabbed too freely among his own
kind The tale of his babbling had
reached Fiaschetti.
After Manfredi had given me all
of these facts" Fiaschetti continued.
1.-The next task was to bring in the
rest of the murderers. None of them
was in Akron. They made it point
to keep out of town. ! had a long
chase, but finally got them all-six.
including the leader and instigator.
cuted and three went to prison for
life or long terms"
EIASCHETTI rated this gang as
L perhaps the most desperate with
which his Italian squad has had to
deal. Next to it came q Camorrist
crowd with a record of seventy
murders. The hunting down of this
group shows certain resemblances to
the Akron case. Again we find the
mysterious source of Information and
likewise the element Of cajoling the
criminal into confession.
Several months ago." Fiaschetti
said. a mans body was fished out of
the Shrewsbury river near Asbury
Park. Weighted down with two
stones, the corpse had been in the
water for nine days. 1t was that of
a middle-aged Italian. and showed
shotgun slugs discharged into the
back as cause of death. There was
nothing to identify the man. or give
any clue to his murderers. In little
while I got some information that a
fellow named Bartolo Fontana knew
something about the Asbury Park
murder. picked Fontana up and
took him to headquarters. After talk
cided that could get the facts out
of him. didn't put him in a cell,
but took him around with me. We
talked, had a few drinks, played
cards, and then I took him to a hotel
for the night. At first he said that
he knew nothing about the man
found in the Shrewsbury river. but
kept arguing pleasantly with him
urging him to come clean, and pretty
soon he did. He was rather easy
After a man has done a couple OF
killings for those desperate gangs
they are, apt to kill him to keep his
mouth shut, and Fontana belonged to
one from which he knew what to ex.
tpect in the normal course of things
| He told me this story:
Some time before, one OF the
chiefs Of the gang had come to him
and SAID:
"Fontana,, do. you know Carmills
Gaeszo?"
".sure,' said Fontana. we came
from the same town. We are ole
friends. His father was a friend Of
my father
| swell said the other. you've go
/ to kill ,Carmillo Gae5zo.'
"What could Fontana do? He has
| to obey orders or he would have diet
| right away. He invited his friens