Evening star., 1941-08-29
Victim S Friend
Calls ParasoI
Positively Hers
Circumstuntiul
Evidence Tightens
About Prisoner
Earlier Story on Page A-1.)

Earlier Story on Page A-1)
Positive identification this aft y
ernoon of a white umbrella car
ried by Jessie Elizabeth Strieff on
the rainy Sunday afternoon she
was murdered tightened the net
of circumStantial evidence about :
the War Department clerks con-
fessed slayer, Jarvis R. Catoe. Sc, .
colored.
Catoe led police early today 10
the umbrella He had given it to
colored woman after hiding it in
the garage in the 1900 block of S
street NV, where he assaulted and
murdered Miss Strieff. Miss Strieff
had borrowed the umbrella from a
young friend, Miss Betty Stribling,
a Federal employe.
Miss Stribling went to headquar-
ters this afternoon and was shown
the umbrella by Detective Sergt.
Aubrey Tolson.
That positively is my umbrella"
she said.
Women's Clothing Seized.
Police early today seized a vanity
case, another umbrella, hat and
several pairs of women's shoes given
to the woman by Catoe. All of the
articles, it was said, were taken
from other victims of Catoe.
Catoe has confessed seven MUIR
ders, including those of Miss Strieff
and Mrs. Rose Abramowitz Police
announced early today that the for
mer undertaker's assistant and
police informer had made a written
confession to the garroting of Miss
Strieff, and an oral admission to
the strangling of Mrs. AbramowitZ,
28-year-old bride of a month.
Further questioning of the slayer
suspect at police headquarters this
afternoon brought statement from
Catoe that he had choked and killed
"at least" 10 women.
The suspect was arrested early
yesterday morning as he left his
home in the 1700 block of Swami
street NV.
Meanwhile, Coroner A. Magruder
Macdonald announced an inquest
into Miss Strieff's death will be held
at 80 am. Tuesday.
Herring Urges Bill.
As the case was developed during
the day, Senator Herring, Demo-
crat, of Iowa issued statement in
which he declared failure of WASH
ington police to catch the murderer
of Miss Strieff and six or seven
other women" shows the necessity
for enactment of his bill that would
give the Federal Bureau of Investi-
cation concurrent Jurisdiction over
major crimes committed in the Dis
| trict.
The statement follows:
''The apprehension of man who
confesses to the murder of Betty
Strief is gratifying, and con-
gratulate Supt. Kelly.
However, it must be recognized
that the manner in which this
vicious character was run to earth
demonstrates conclusively the need
for complete reorganization along
the lines outlined in the bill which
I introduced in the Congress. This
bill brings into the law enforcement
staff of the District all the resources
of the F. B. l., the organization
which has so successfully reduced
to the vanishing point crimes for
whose solution it is responsible
throughout the Nation.
Proof of Need for Action.
"The cruel facts are that had this
criminal been ferreted out and pun
ished after the commission of his
first crime, seven or eight lives would
have been saved, and the commits
sion of countless other outrages
would have been prevented.
"a further proof of the necessity
for different handling of the crime
problem in the District is found in
the fact that this man has lived
right here in Washington within a
few blocks of the scenes Of his
crimes, and yet it remained for the
New York police force to find him
and bring about his arrest and con-
feSsion."