Evening star., 1932-09-23
MAN FOUND BOUND
DECLARED SUICIDE.
Acting Coroner Agrees That
Thomas N. InneS Tied
Self With Rope.

A certificate Of death by suicide was
issued today by Acting Coroner A. Mag
ruder Macdonald In the drowning in
the Tidal Basin yesterday Of Thomas
N. Innes, 56-year-old New York con-
struction engineer, whose bound and
gagged body was found in the water
near the foot Of Seventeenth street.
The coroner agreed with investigators
that the man had trussed himself up
and placed handkerchief in his mouth
before toppling off the basin wall into
four feet of water. No marks Of
violence had been found on the body.
John Innes, son of the dead man, ar
rived in the Capital early today to claim
the body. He said his father had been
in Ill health for several months and
had not been regularly employed The
body will be taken to New York for
burial
An autopsy performed at the Morgue
yesterday afternoon revealed conclu-
sively that the man died from drown
ing, quantities of water being found
in the stomach and lungs. Coroner
Macdonald expressed the belief the
body had been in the water only lew
hours. A watch in the clothes had
stopped at los o'clock.
Belongings Under Tree.
Innes' body was found shortly be-
fore 2 o'clock by Frank Sweeney. So,
of Scranton, Pa, who was walking
around the Tidal Basin. Sweeney first
noticed the mans belongings under a
tree close to the basin wall. InveSti-
eating, he found the partly submerged
body.
Nearby were his shoes, hat, pipe,
eyeglasses, a notebook and papdRs,
including letters of recommendation
from construction firms bearing In
nes name. Searching the pockets of
the mans clothes, headquarters detec-
tives found small locket, engraved
with the initials T. N. l., in which was
found card of Elks Lodge, No. 878,
Elmhurst, Long Island, N. Y, bearing
his name. In his clothes also were
found baggage-check from Union Sta
ton issued at 7:45 am. September 81,
and a gold inclosed-case watch. with
the name Thomas N. Innes on the face,
and the initials T. N. /. engraved on
the outer case.
The shoes had apparently been re-
moved by cutting the laces, although
no knife was found either on the body
or among the effects. The only money
found was Is cents.
At the morgue, in the presence Of
DIR. Macdonald. Deputy Coroner c. j.
Murphy. Detective Sergt. H. K. Wilson.
head of the homicide squad, and other
headquarters detectives and newspaper
men, the rope was unraveled. The rope.
which it was later established had been
removed from a life preSerVer near the
point where the body was found, had
first been Topped around his left ankle
with a slip-knot. Drawn tight, 1t had
then been passed around the right ankle
and knotted between the two.
Held End Of Rope.
A loop had next been formed around
the left wrist, drawing the arm under
meath the legs and fastening the wrists
to the ankles. A second loop was then
formed for the right wrist. Passing his
hand through this loop, Investigators
said it would have been quite possible
for the man to have drawn the rope
tight and completed the tying by knot
ting the end around that portion of the
rope between his ankles. When the
body was found the end OF the rope
was gripped tightly in the right fist;
The valiSe was claimed at Union Sta
tion last night and was found to con-
tain only personal effects. Innes' name
was on the bag.
The letters Of recommendation bore
the letterheads of the White Construc-
ton Co., New York City; the Martin
Dennis Construction Co., Newark, N. j,
and the H. A. Maine Co., Waterloo,
Iowa. According to records Of the Elm
hurst Elks Lodge, Innes had once trans
ferred hts membership to Waterloo,
His survivors include his widow and
four sons.