CHARMING MURDERER

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 17976, 22 March 1930, Page 2 (Supplement)

CHARMING MURDERER

An amazing story of murder, corrupt politics, and smuggling on a gigantic scale is told by Mr Edward D. Sulivan, an American journalist, in his extraordinary book “ Look at Chicago-” It-describes In detail the furious encounters between the various criminal gangs which range the streets of Chicago, in their struggle for the vast profits of the illegal traffic in alcohol.

ing any particular contrast in appearance to the ordinary , car, its body is constructed of armour plate. Every bit of glass in it is bullet-proof. It cost £6000.” But then Al’s profits are enormous. The gross turnover of his “ outfit ” in 1926 was estimated at £14,000,000 by the United States authorities, and is thought to-day to be more than £2o,oooffioo. Murder is an article in which he and his friends deal: “ £lO will buy the death of an unimportant person and £2OO of anyone, no matter how important.” A 1 was always credited with the murder of Dion O’Banion, a notorious hi-jackcr (a bandit whb plunders the bootlegger or liquor smuggler) : “ lie never had a chance. Five shots were fired first—all high on Die victim—which is typical of gangster bump- ! offs. Two in the right chest. Two j in the throat. One in the cheek- Then j a delay and the final one— a carefully j considered finisher- —through the head. That’s gang stuff.” The funeral of this man in a silver coffin beat all records: “The body “lay in state” for three days and thousands viewed it. There were 26 truckloads of flowers! Some-of the j individual pieces cost, as much as i £1000.” , j The indefatigable A 1 weighed in : with a monster wreath as an ironic j tribute to the victim he had had killed-

As the result of Prohibition and the practical disappearance of the death penalty, murders in Chicago have risen from 26 in 1900 to 368 in 1928. Machine guns are ruthlessly employed in the battles between rival syndicates of bandits. A ghastly lis-t of 92 names of men who have been murdered in the last five years including police, State officials, and fellow bandits) is appended to the book, with the information that for the entire total of 92 people slaughtered “ there are only four indictments pending,” and that none of the murderers has yet been punished. Armour-Plate liffotor-onp. The prince of banditry is one A 1 Capone, aged only 32, who is, it appears, a charming fellow when he is not seeking your blood.” He is not petty. He is generous, foolishly so. He is intensely loyal. He has a good I memory and is appreciative. He talks litttle, but when he has uttered a few sounds you have heard something. The rest of him is yours for a nickel-

He is at present in prison, comfortably guarded by his gang, but when he is at large he uses a motorcar, which “ weighs nearly eight tons and is about as immune to attack as a British tank. Although not show-

VIVID STORY Op CHICAGO’S “GANG” WARFARE. GREAT NUMBER Op CRIMES IN LAST FEW ■ YEARS UNPUNISHED.

tVlassacre In a Garage. AI, again, is believed to have been behind the “ massacre ” last year of the survivors of O’Banion’s of gunmen. Five of them with two friends were enticed to a garage. An hour or so later: “a truckman entering the garage found seven men lying in a forty-foot pool of blood; they were riddled from head, to foot with machine-gun bullets.” One only still ’lived when the bodies were found, and he was dying: “With six of his -pals dead —one of them ids brother —ho could not squeal. “Which gangwas it, Frank?” asked the sergeant of police . . - Frank’s head shook a negative- There was a silent few minutes, then, “ It’s getting dark, Sarg., so long,” and Frank was dead.” He was a merciless man and would only admit superlatively skilful thugs to his gang. Trial by jury has become a farce, because .jurors are threatened with death if they do iheir duty. In a famous case one of the jury went insane from fright, and several of the witnesses for Hie prosecution were threatened with violence or offered bribes. [Meanwhile Ihe City of Chicago, plundered by polticians who are in league with Ihesc robbers and murderers, is bankrupt. Such is democrary in its Middle Western home.