Evening star., 1934-08-22
TO DIE
ON NOCTOBER22
.HUBAND'S MURDER
Richmond Jury ConvictS Mail
Truck HoId.Up Man
in 13 Hours.
MAIS, FOURTH OF GANG,
FACES TRIAL AUGUST 27
Court 0verrules Motion to Set
Verdict Aside, Imposing Inn
mediate Sentence.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
RICHMOND, Va, August 22.-wal-
ter Legenza, charged with being one
Of five men who shot and killed q
Federal Reserve Bank mail truck
driver during robbery, was found
guilty early today at a trial which
lasted only 13 hours. He was sentenced
to die in the electric chair October "a.
Legenza was tried for the murder
OF E. M. Huband, the truck driver, who
was shot to death on the night OF
March 8. His conviction removes the
third of five men who, the Govern
ment says, took part in the robbery
and shooting. Legenza was Identified
by one witness as the trigger man" In
the hold-up.
The other members OF the gang,
George Phillips and George Kaufman,
have been killed in fights with police
men.
Robert Mais, also charged with be.
ing q member of the gang, will 60 on
trial August 81.
Misunas State Witness.
Arthur Dutch" Misunas, fifth mefn-
Der of the gang, has pleaded guilty
and turned States evidence.
Five men waylaid the bank truck,
killed the driver and fed with mail
bags which contained nothing more
than Cancelled checks
Judge John L. Ingram Immediately
passed sentence, setting the date ol
execution by death in the electric
chair. H
Judge Ingram also announced the
date Of the trial Of Robert Mais, third
man accused of participation in ths
hold-up, for August ~.
Defense counsel entered a motion ID
set aside the verdict as contrary ID
the law and the evidence. but Judge
John L. Ingram oserruled the motior
and Immediately passed sentence.
Another star witness for the com,
iflonwealth was Mrs. Lenora Gasslyr
Fontaine, former gang girl" friend
of big George Phillips, who wa
slain In Washington April Il by Wash,
ington police. She, described the &C,
tivities of the five men during the pas
year and q half.
Reliance Of Prosecution.
But 1t was from Misunas that the
commonwealth obtained the TESTIMONY
which was the strongest support Of it,
case against Legenza. q
The big, florid, self-described "bad
man.. who was apprehended in Cali,
fornia by postal inspectors and re.
ffTr1ad hnr0 fnr TRIAL 70 a
fessed to his part in the crime while
en- route across country, and named
Legenza from the witness stand a.
the man who shot and killed Huband
He described his own part In the
hold-up, admitting that he carried
along q machine gun, not for the. pur.
pose Of shooting, but for "intimida4
ton"
Misunas' testimony was contradicted
by Mais and Marie McKeever. who
described herself as Mais' sweetheart
These two defense witnesses accused
Misunas of being the trigger man In
the hold-up staying. The woman
testified that Misunas told her, y
was the trigger man in both hold-ups.'
The other ,hold-up, she had testified
occurred In Baltimore.
Mais testified that Misunas visited
him at his home in Philadelphia and
requested money, explaining that ht
had shot a man In Richmond and an,
other in Washington and needed the
money to get away. The defens'
sought to establish the alibi that tn,
defendant was in New York at thl
time of the murder. Thomas Brescia
operator of a New York restaurant
said Legenza had eaten supper in hi
restaurant on the night of March 8
William J. Doran, a New York DailI
News pressman, testified he also saw
Legenza in the Brescia restaurant on
that night
Legenza showed no emotion wher
the verdict was read, and Throughout
the trial remained passive except foi
an occasional nervous twitch Of hi
right eye. He gazed stonily at the
witnesses.