Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1924-08-30
N. Y. MURDER
COMES CLOSE
TO POCOMOKE
Miss Moxelle Griffin, Cousin OF
Murder Suspect, Is Wanted
For Interview.
THINK SHE MAY KNOW
CRIMINALS WHEREABOUTS

moke City, in the search for the sus-
pected criminal, occurred in New
York last week. Charles Raas, is
wanted by the police. He had a cousin
visiting near Pocomoke. A telegram
was received here requesting an in
terview with her to see if she could
tell anything about Raas' where
abouts. 1t was only discovered that
Miss Moxelle Griffin had gone to
North Carolina.
A tin box, in basement, gave up
the body of Aaron Graft, wealthy
manufacturer of Wilkes-Barre, Pa,
and furnished the homicide squad an
other gruesome murder mystery to
solve.
Graft, missing since August 1 had
been strangled. His limbs had been
hacked off and crammed, with the rest
of his body, into galvinized tin con-
tainer four feet long. Blankets had
been stuffed around him, the lid of
the box had been sealed with shellac,
and over all had been poured thick
coating of wax and plaster of paris.
A tiny hole in the box released an
odor of decomposition which days ago
caused residents Of the building to
complain to health authorities. De-
tectives, who for weeks had been
searching for Graft, traced the odor
to the basement and thence to the box.
The dead man was a manufacturer
of radio cabinets. The basement
where his body was found was occu-
pied by the family of John Logasy,
carpenter and caretaker, from whom
Graft purchased cabinets in the rough.
Logasy is reported by his wife to
have been missing since August 9th
and general alarm was broadcast
for his arrest. His wife and one of
his carpenter-shop employees are in
custody as material witnesses.
Graft, who was seventy-two, occu-
pied an apartment in West Seventy
second street. When last seen by his
wife he had $500 cash on his person
and set forth to the Logasy home on
West Twelfth street to. pay the car
penter $100 on account.
No money was found, however, in
the tin box which for 21 days conceal
ed Crafts body.
When the manufacturer failed to
return home the night of August 1,
his wife notified the police, who kept
the fact of his disappearance secret
while they traced the few meagre
clues Mrs. Graft was able to furnish.
Several times they visited the base
ment home of the Logasys, but learn
ed nothing.
Then one day a tenant on the Sec
ond floor complained to Logasy about
an unpleasant odor that permeated
the building, asserting he would COM
plain to the health department if
something wasn't done about it.
"Must be rats in the basement" was
LogaSy'S reply, accOfdlng TO the
police.
Health authorities came the next
day and removed considerable gar
bage from the basement, but didn't
touch the tin box.
In the meantime Logasy disappear
ed and the police listed two men miss
ing-Graff the employer and Logasy
the employee. They suspected a con
Meeting link, but couldn't find it until
they investigated the tin box.
Charles Raas, partner of Loga-
sy's, and owner of the tin varn;sh vat,
in which the body of Graft was found
has disappeared. It is the police
search for him that brought the tele-
gram to Pocomoke City.