OCR Text |
Show FORMER MR AID BTHEJSJiOLIi Ex-Member of East St. Louis City Council Confesses Corruption. ST. LOT71S. June 27. An Investigation Into alleged municipal Irregularities In East St. Louis, III., culminated today In tho publication of a sworn confession of bribery mndo by Joseph A. Fansler, n formor member of tho East St. Louis city council. The confession was made yesterday In the presence of Charles Webb, otate's attorney of St. Clnlr county, 111., and Curtis A. Betta. a reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and was sworn to before a notary public. The confession came within a few days of a statement by Stato's Attorney Webb that he would lay any evidence of municipal mu-nicipal irregularities before tho grand Jury, which will meet In September, and that he wns prepared to offer Immunity to any guilty person who should aid the state in securing convictions. The confession of Fansler details two alleged acts of bribery the payment of S3000 for a franchise granting the East SL Louis Interurban Railway company the right to lay tracks on certain streets of the city, and the payment of $3000 for a franchise granting tho Alton & Southern South-ern the right to cross certain Btreets. Six members of tho city, council shared In the division of the Hrst J3000, according accord-ing to the confession, and four members in the dlvlelon of the second $3000. Both bribes were paid in 1912, it la charged. Charles S. Lambert, who then was mayor of East St. Louis, 13 named In the confession as the man who handed one of the councils $1500 of the Alton & Southern bribe money which was refused re-fused as insufficient- Lambert, It 1h said, went to John L. Flannlgan, then counsel coun-sel for the railway company and later corporation counsel of East SL Louis, and got from the latter tho full J3000 bribe money. Lambert was succeeded as mayor this spring by John L Chamberlain, who was elected on a reform platform. Lambert Lam-bert supported tho Chamberlain ticket In the campaign. Lambert's home was closed today. Xelghbors raid he had left the city in an automobile early this morning, sa.yinv ho would not return until Monday. All the others rsamed as recipients of bribe money by Fansler vigorously denied the accurntlon. |