Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-24
.|MPASSE REACHED |
IN HUNT FOR KILLER
Investigators Search in Vain
for New Clue in Baker
Murder Case.
CONTINUED From First page.>

CUtlpuLllcQ MAJ. 11cLlIy VI. f-Tdtt, super
intendent of police to the Capitol to
attend hearing on the bill providing
for the establishment Of police school.
The homicide squad of the Detective
Bureau under the direction of Lieut..
Edward ]. Kelly as well as Department
Of Justice operatives, who have been
working on the case, continued, however,
to follow leads which have not been
thoroughly checked, but which are re-
garded as inconsequential in value. All
of the officers remained in Washington,
indicating that they have virtually
abandoned any idea at this time Of
| finding the murderer outside the Dis
| trict.
what little hope the investigators
had of tracing the crime to a quartet
Of suspects, three Of whom are under
| arrest in Virginia, and the fourth in
| the State Sanitarium at Staunton, was
blasted after an investigation. The Of
hcials also concluded check up among
employees in the Navy Department,
where Miss Baker worked, without pro-
curing any information of value.
| Headquarters Detective Thomas
Sweeney, who went to Richmond yes
| terday to question Earl w. Frank, a
former convict taken into custody
there, reported to Inspector Shelby that
he Is satisfied that the man was not in
or near Washington on the night Of
April IL when Miss Baker was muir
dered.
Passed Through Washington.
| Frank, according to Sweeney's re-
| port, was in the vicinity Of Goldsboro,
~. c., on April IL and IL, but passed
through Washington on O bus Sunday,
April Is, en- route to Baltimore, where
he visited a sister. Frank reached
Washington at am. April -, the re-
port stated, stopping long enough to
change buses, and arrived in Baltimore
at $3.50 o'clock. A comparison also was
made Of Franks fingerprints and PALM
prints and those found on Miss Bakers
abandoned car, but there was no SINH
larity.
A salesman who was regarded rs a
suspect also has been eliminated. This
man left Washington the day after the
crime was committed and went to Nor
folk, Va, where he locked himself In q
hotel room for four days. Later he
entered the Virginia State Hospital at
Staunton. Investigation has satisfied
the officials, however, that he had no
connection with the crime.
The requestioning of Frank Smith
held in the Arlington County Jail for
removing articles from Miss Bakers
car, likewise failed to throw any light
| on the crime. The alibiS of the men
as to their whereabouts on the night
Of April II have not been completely
checked, but the investigators are con-
fdent that their connection with the
case concerns only the theft Of O small
coin purse, scarf and leather cushion
from the abandoned machine.
Inspector Gets Statement
The two men, revealed for the first
time, however, that the articles were
County police had found 1t and had
gone away. The statement of Smith,
which Violin corroborated insofar as It
concerned his connection with the
theft, was submitted to Inspector Shelby
by Headquarters Detective John
Flaherty. It read as follows:
Il got up Saturday morning, April
| IL, 1885,, around q am; did q few
things for my aunt, telling her was
going to Georgetown to see about q Job.
1t was then around $50 am. when I
left the house. On going up toward
Military road saw a Ford sedan on the
left side Of the road, and there was
two Virginia officers searching around
in 1t. stepped back out of sight of
the officers and watched them. When
they left went up to the car, looked
inside and opened the door and saw
parasol on the floor, q scarf and q small
change purse. put the scarf and
change purse In my pocket and left
the parasol IN the car; then went back
home.
when got back to the house James
Vollin was there. showed the scarf
| TO James and my aunt told my aunt
had found the scarf. James asked me
where had found 1t and told him
there was an auto up on Military road
and 1t looked as If some one had been
fighting in the car, as 1t was fun Of
blood. James asked me about the car
and asked him If he wanted to see 1t.
He said yes so we both walked back
to the car. When we got there opened
the back door and took the parasol out.
James took good look around and
said, Let's look around in the weeds,
maybe We can ind something they
dropped
Finds Leather Cushion.
1--WE walked a little way OF the road
and James picked up q leather cushion
and we both walked back to the house
taking the stuff with us. We showed the
stuff to our Aunt Harriet Virgins. She
questioned us about 1t and we told her
We found it on the road"
Annie Burch and Dorothy Virgins
were at the house as well as Harriet
them about the car and they said they
would like to see 1t. So James and I,
with Annie Burch and Dorothy Wig
gins, started up the road for the pur-
pose OF seeing the car and on our way
We saw two officers sitting In an auto.
mobile nearby and watching the car.
So we walked on past and did not stop.
When we got part of the way up the
road Edgar Marshall came along in a
Ford coupe and picked up the two girls
and took therl to Washington. After
they left James and came back to the
house
MY aunt asked me II wanted
breakfast and I had something to eat
and hung around the house for nearly
25 minutes; then walked out on the
road and met Herman Parks. Edgar
Vollin and another boy, who told me
there was some men up on Military
up there with them. When we walked
up Military road as far as the second
gate We saw a large crowd. When
we got up to the crowd some one said.
| They just took lady'S body out Of
the culvert.' We stayed around for
q while until truck came past. We
Jumped on it and rode back to Queen
1 City, leaving 1t at that point and re.
turning home where I told my aunt
what had happened.
Arrested at Home.
| II stayed around home until the Of
ncers came to the house about $50
pm. and questioned me about what
LOOK out OF the automobile. told them
got the parasol, scarf, change purse,
and that James Violin got the cushion
| wnicn ! mad already turned over to
them. While the officers we're there
| James Violin came IN, the house and wa