Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-09-27


; amassed by the FBI in trying
later with a bandaged hand,
explaining he had been
wounded in Korea.
He was invited to come to the
FBI to answer questions about
his statments of Government
employment. He explained that
he told the stories of his secret
missions to play the part OF a
big shot" since it made him
feel important and made other
people have confidence in him.
AS on some subsequent occa-
sions where his tall tales reached
official ears. the prosecutor
ruled that Motherwell did not
vio'<te the Federal Impersona-
ton Stat lite because he did not
get or attempt. to get anything
of value through his false
claims.
Exposed by Reporter
Although most women have
Swallowed his stories, it was a
woman reporter in Johnson
City, Tenn. who called Official
attention to his next known
masquerade.
She attended a party in De-
cember, 1854, where Mother
well. dressed in the uniform of
a Navy captain, was introduced
to her as the fiance of she
assistant librarian of a nearby
college.
She became suspicious when
he mentioned he was on a con-
fldential assignment and that
he had a Navy jet plane as
signed to him for his secret
missions. When he claimed to
own the entire town of Silver
Springs. Fla. as we'll as a
palatial estate in Washington,
she informed the authorities.
He was taken into custody
on a downtown street wearing
the captains uniform plus a
cheStful Of decorations. When
he was arraigned, he immedi-
ately admitted that his whole
story was a big hero lie." that
he had never been in any
branch Of the service and that
he wore the uniform to satisfy
his ego and impress his hancee
and her relatives.
Pleads Guilty, Put On Proba ton
He pleaded guilty to a H.
count indictment and was
placed on probation for two
years during which time he re-
manned here, from August,
1855. to August, 1857.
Tive other representations
were investigated by the FBI in
1958-both involving women
and both discontinued for lack
Of prosecution.
One investigation started be-
cause of a woman's fear that
Motherwell might have died in
foreign service. The woman
told FBI agents that she pos
sibly would have married.
Motherwell If he had not stated
that due to his secret assign
ments in the Navy, he was not
allowed to marry.
The other woman said he had
once told her he could not as
sociate with anyone who had
not been cleared to handle con-
1dential information.
Fools 3 Women simultaneously
She also told the FBI that
Motherwell called her in Feb
ruary. 1858, to say he had been
arrested for a crime involving
his wife and had been SEN
fenced to serve 10 months at a
prison in Sandstone, MINI.
The only recognizable part
Of that story was the prison.
That's where Motherwell served
his time for representation In
1945.
The dates uncovered by the
investigations indicate that |
Motherwell has had three diff
ferent poses going with three
different women at the same
time.
The third woman was Mrs. |
Pearl Putney, the 72-year-old
Washington widow who began
writing about him in her diary
in 1856.
Her bleached bones were
found in remote maintain
section of California last month
almost exactly a year to the
day after she checked out of a
California motel with Mother
well and was not seen alive
again
One Of Mrs. Putney's 1857 |
diary entries notes a Mother
we'll whopper. He told her he
was kissed by Queen Elizabeth.