Imperial Valley press., 1924-05-31
Murder Planned
In Cold Blood q
Long TmeAhead
BY United Press Leased wlrs

| CHICAGO, May 81. - Nathan
Leopold and Richard Loeb, sons of
| millionaire Chicago men and both
law students at the University of
Chicago, confessed today to kid
naping and numbering Rob ert
franks, IA year old school boy.
states Attorney Robert +. Grove
announced the two had admitted the
/ crime.
We had been reading of kidnap-
| ing adventures and demands for
ransom,' Leopold told authorities in
| explaining the crime. 1--WE had all
me money we needed, of course, but
F., we thought it would be ripping
/ good adventure to kidnap some
youngster and try to get some mon
ey for it.
: At first we didn plan the
murder but we decided it would be
/ playing safe to put our victim out
of the way.
We bought all the equipment we
needed and then our next task was
to select the victim. We wanted
to get some boy whose father had
| plenty of money. We decided to
look around the Harvard school
#here all the students were wealthy. !
we selected Robert as our victim. I,
Leopold then recited the details
OF the KIDNAPPING and the sIaying
of the youth, showing the remark
able plans they had laid.
We rented an automobi.a AMI
went to the Harvard school Just
as the boys were coming out. We
called Robert and invited him to
take a ride. That part was easy.
'NWhen we get him in the ear We
hit him over the head with a chisel
we had prepared. 1t was wrapped
In tape so that it wouldn t make a
sharp cut in the boy s skull.
Our next move was to choke our
victim. We stuffed rags in his mouth
and then gave him some ether which
/ stole from the chemistry la5orato-
~ at college.
Burned Boys Clothing
We drove out south to the city
limits and carried the boy into i
thlcket. Here we undressed him.
choked him to death and then threw
hydrocboloric acid on his face. We
Gld this in an attempt to disfigure
him so badly that if the BODY was
found it couldn' L be identified.
"We buried the shoes and hrrned
the clothing. ! think you can find
the shoes now if you look
Leopold admitted it was he who
wrote the ransom letter demanding
$4,000 of Jacob Franks, the Vie
tim S father.
"We thought that was "A ligh.
smart piece of work. Leopold told
police, but apparently it helped to
lead to our downfall. .
Capture of Leopold was brought
by three Chicago detectives--Wif
liam Crot, Frank johnson and James
Courtland. Their work was long
and tiresome and for many days
they feared they We're following
poor leads. They were praised by
state S Attorney aud his staff for
one of the most clever pieces of de.
tective work on record.
Aside from the ransom lettee, tn.
only clue was pair of horn rim
med eve glasses found near the BODY
of the slain youth. Robert never
ing TO a public park on the other
side of the city and watching for
new spring birds. This was follows
ed, they said, by "wild gin par
wore glasses, his father told police,
end it was at once suspeete | thag
they had been dropped by the
murderer.
The three detectives went 10 a
large optical house and learue tho
name of Dir. William Deutsci., an
eve specialist, who sent most If hts
patients to this particular firm.
DR.. Deutseh examined the fsi@sses
nd said he had prescribed such
glasses to three different people. III
gave the detectives their names. One
WAS Il prominent business man, one
was woman. The third name WAS
Nathan Leopold
The detectives questioned the man
md the woman and were satirfied
neither had any connection with the
,fime. Then came Leopold.
When Leopold stoutly denied hc
,Ver wore glasses, but later admit
ed he once wore glasses like those
'ound near the scene of the murder
md said he had lost them sssaanf
months ago, the detectives bplies-
I'd they were on the right track
At this point he admitted that be
'requented the lonely waste lands
where the boy s body was found,
lie said he was studying nature.
Had g ''Gin Party
Loeb was then called and the
wo youths were questioned ~ ~
heir movements on the day ~ tho