The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-12-10
Attorney Navin Reviews Attempts Made to Black
 mail Ex-MayOr Hayes

I client, Fibre Massucci, today issue, a statement elaborating upon story which appeared recently il The Democrat and which indicate, a possible reopening of a probe int the actual facts. Massucci was ar rested, tried, convicted and sen fenced for attempting to extor money from former Mayor Franl Hayes. His arrest caused sensa ton, coming about the time of tn famous conspiracy trial.
 Today's statement intimates tha Superintendent of Police William J. Roach failed to order a prope inquiry. Attorney Navin plans t, solicit the aid of the board of DO lice commissioners in obtaining win dication for his client. He has alst appealed to federal authorities fo reconsideration of the charges.
 His statement follows:
 After the publication in tn, Waterbury Democrat on Decembel 4th of story relating to the cast of Fibre Massucci, in which I wa! quoted at some length, several peo. pie have asked me questions which leads me to believe that I did no make myself as clear as I nigh have. In order to clarify matters and at the same time to make i distinctly understood that I did moi intend to insinuate that Chief In i spector Stevens and his detective bureau should have seen the ob. vious motive behind the two extor- ton notes allegedly received by former Mayor Hayes, and also the astonishing inconsistencies between the first and second notes, I feel that I should elaborate on my state- ment as contained in the Water bury Democrat.
 I should like to say at this time that at no time in the past, espe- cially during the conspiracy trial until the appeals were decided by the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, and indeed until last Friday have ever made any statement pertaining to the MasSucci matter and its very clear connection with the famous conspiracy case. My reasons for not making any state ment are well known to certain in- dividuals, and it would serve no useful purpose to go into a dicus- sion of them at this time.
 Extortion Note
 With respect to the investigation conducted by the local authorities, the record, as shown by the testi- mony of Captain Stevens and for mer Mayor Hayes, discloses that MT. Hayes received the first of the alleged extortion notes on December 21, 1888. He immediately turned it over to Superintendent Roach, and the latter, instead of turning it over to Captain Stevens, since the de- tective bureau was the logical agency to make any investigation did not so much as inform Captain Stevens that a note had been re- ceived.
 The second alleged eXtortion note was received by MT. Hayes on De- cember %, 1888, and this one also MT. Hayes turned over to Superin- tendent Roach, who then, on the afternoon of December %, for the first time showed the notes to Chief Inspector Stevens. MT. Stevens testified that at that time MT. Roach permitted him to look at the notes for just ten minutes, obviously for the purpose of determining at what points to station his men on the evening of December 30, 1888 around the intersection of Catherine avenue and Wall street. After ten minutes, MT. Roach took the notes and MT. Stevens did not see them again until after Massucci had been ar- rested and brought into the police station. As far as the record dis closes. no one but MT. Roach had possession of these notes, after they had been turned over to him by MT. Hayes, until after Massucci was ar- rested, except, of course for the period of ten minutes on the after noon of December 29th. at which time Roach showed them to MT. Stevens.
 In last Fridays Waterbury Dem- ocrat stated that sought to have a continuance in the Massucci trial until Superintendent Roach return ed from California. The reason l wanted the police chief around was to find out from him what investi- gation he carried on after MT. Hayes turned the first note over to him. If he had made any investl- gation at all: indeed, If he had merely read the first note, 1t seems to me that his first act would have been to consult Special Prosecutor Alcorn, or at any rate. his special investigator. present Commissioner of State Police, Edward Hickey. l am an attorney-at-law, and pre- sumably not qualified to investigate crimes when committed, as super intendent of police would naturally be. yet I immediately went to MT. Hickey when I had had an oppor- tunity to read the contents of the notes, since my duty seemed clear enough to me.
 Roach Takes Charge
 To put it in language that every one can understand, MT. Roach, in assuming complete charge of the investigation of the notes, without even so much as taking the chief inspector into his confidence, made very secondary aides out of his de- tective bureau. I amsconvinced that had inc chief irspector been given the opportunity of studying the first note received by the former mayor then there never would have been n second note. because the very apparent object of the so-called biackmail attempt against MT Hayes would have definitely been "nipped in the bud" I say this without any fear of contradiction because I am acquainted with the ability of certain members of the A &RRAnRaAkH