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Show CINCINNATI OFFICERS ROUND UP LEADERS OF "BLACK HAND" SOCIETY Voluminous Evidence Gathered Which Connects Gang With Organization in Italy and Which Declares Them the Perpetrators of Many Awful Crimes One of Arrested Italians Is Thought to Have Been Connected With Petrosino's Assassination When he read that he was believed to have instigated the plot to blackmail Amicon, Lima exclaimed in broken English: "Amicon is jealous. That's all. He is jealous of me, because I sell more bananas in Ohio than he doe6." i ' Lima is known to have sent $$00 to an agent in Italy within the last three weeks. His business here is a small one, and the federal officials say ' its profits would not net in years tho amount of money that has-, passed through Lima's hands In the last few months, i j (Continued on Page Five) Cincinnati, June 9. Operations in nearly every largo city in tho United States and the ramifications of tho secret service in Italy, will bo laid bare, it is expected when the black hand gang, which was rounded up in Columbus and Marlon. Ohio, by post-office post-office Inspectors of Cincinnati, are brought to trial. Inspector-ln-chler Holmes says the evidence gathered by his inspectors and by detectives and the police of several cities Is voluminous, volum-inous, and there can be no doubt that the crimes of blackmail, extortion and threatened and attempted murder will be fastened upon the guilty men. In addition to the arrest of four Sicilians in Marlon. Columbus and Dennlson, Tuesday. Joe Botella and Sam Rizze were taken Into custody In Marion Tuesday, Joe Botella and Sam Rlzze were taken into custody In Marion Tuesday night. Those arrested earlier in tho day were Sain Lima, said to bo the ring-leader of the gang In tho United States, and Joe RIzzo, In Marion; Mar-ion; Antonio Marslsl. in Dennison, and Collogero Vlccarlo In Bellefontaiue. These arrests were made following letters sent to John Amicon, a wealthy fruit dealer of Columbus, Ohio. The inspectors in-spectors say they have evidence that a room In the rear of a little fruit store in Marion, conducted by the Rizzos, was the headquarters of the society in this country, and they found, in a safe there, letters which will throw light on many successful at' tempts to ex( ort money from wealthy Italians in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania Pennsyl-vania and other states. The letters confiscated fill two large mail sacks. Some were received from points as far west as South Dakota, They show, the officers assert, that hundreds of Italian businessmen have been paying tribune to the black hand to gain Immunity from death or tor-iure tor-iure at Iho hands ofthe members of the society. Books showing the receipt re-ceipt of money and its division among members of the gang also were found. The names of many active members of the black hand, together with the names of hundreds of their victims, are In possession of the officers. .The officers declare they now have sufficient evidence to convict. Tho New "York police officials who are carrying on the detective work started by Joseph Petrosino, who was killed in Sicily, have been working on the theory that there is no black hand organization, but the operations havo been conducted by individuals lu different dif-ferent cities who have no connection with each other. But the work of the Cincinnati officers tends to show , that the New York experts have been wrong in their theory, and that not only has the black hand a national I organization in the United States, but that It is directly allied with a similar organization In Sicily, and Is working in connection with the Mafia, or Order of The Banana, as it has more recently been known in this country. The coup sprung by the government officers was engineered by Inspector j. F. Oldfield, under Inspector J. R. Holmes, in charge of the Cincinnati office. The conspirators are alleged to have sent $3,000 monthly to Italy. Jt Is said the officers have found the society is an ironbound organization, membership in which is invested with blood curdling oaths, grips, pass-words and signs. Marion. Ohio. June 9. United States Secret Service Agent J. F. Oldfield, who arrested Sam Um3. a fruit merchant, mer-chant, here yesterday, as a leader of ! an Italian blackhand society, has gone 1 to Columbus, taking with him a trunk full of incriminating letters found in Lima's Btore. Some of the letters, all written in Italian, wero decorated with skull and cross-bones. Others were prepared with neatly j drawn bleedmg hearts pierced by dagcers. Most of the letters contain- cd different designs of threatening in- j slgnla of blackhand mystery. Of the f , seven Italians aiJrested with Lima, all but Samuel RIzzo and Sebastian Batazleo have ecn released. Both of , these men arc section hands They I were, associated with Lima, and Jn ' their trunks, toe secret sorvice agents found letters of the same character as j the collection taken from tho safe In ( Lima's store. While the authorities here nre awaiting await-ing the arrival of United States Marshal Mar-shal Chandler from Cleveland, who wil take Rizzo and Batazleo to Toledo, secret service operatives are search- j ing for Italians in neighboring cities 1 who are suspected of implication lu an extortion plot that has netted the band thousands of dollars within the last few months. Some of the bus- j pects are hoing sought In Bcllefon- : talne. Lima's father, who Is wanted, is said to be In upper Sandusky, and tho police there have been asked to apprehend him. A brother' of the alleged al-leged leader of the band, associated with him in business here, has disappeared. disap-peared. Another brother has 'been traced to Italy, whither he went a few weeks ago. Lima was first suspected shortly after John Amicon a wealthy fruit dealer of Columbus, Ohio, received a t letter demanding ten thousand dollars, , and threatening his life unless tho ' money was paid. This letter, it was said, was sent from Marlon through a means of secret Italian agents. Lima was nt informed of the cause of bis Incaiceratlon until today. He was1 given a newspaper when he arose. t CINCINNATI OFFICERS ROUND UP LEADERS OF BLACK HAND (Continued from Page One) Ten thousand dollars have been sent to Italy from the blackmailers now being rounded up, say the federal officers. of-ficers. All this money, it is declared, was wrung from wealthy men of their own race. In no case, as far as known, has any American been disturbed. Lima's store, it is asserted, was the headquarters of a group operating In Ohio, with Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati Cin-cinnati and Toledo as the chief sources of manipulation. Columbus, Juno 0. Charles Vic-ciario Vic-ciario of Bellefontalne, an Italian, was arrested today in Bellofontainc by Postollice Inspector Ilosford, and will bo taken to Toledo bv United States Marshal Chandler of Cleveland. He is charged with being the go-between in securing money for the black hand gang that has been run down at Mar-Ion Mar-Ion and Columbus. Many letters were found In his room In the house where Silvatoria Clria was assassinated a year ago. Ciria is now supposed to have been killed by the black hand. Chicago, June 9. An elleged plot to assassinate Detective Gabriel Lon-gobardi Lon-gobardi of the black-hand squad of the Chicago police force was revealed here today by Longobardi. The plot is said to have Involved a jail delivery. deliv-ery. Several months ago Longobardi arrested ar-rested Gulseppo Burtuccl, who was charged wkh tho murder of another Italian, John Umbrello. Later, tho same officer took Into custody Vin-cenzo Vin-cenzo Geraci. charged with attempting attempt-ing to get $3,000 from Dr. Peter Cut-rera Cut-rera by '"black hand'' threats. Longobardi Lon-gobardi has received two letters recently re-cently from Geracci, staling that a plot was underway to contrive the escape es-cape of Burtuccl from the jail and 1 hat the latter was to carry out a sentence of death Imposed on the detective by a secret Italian boclety. Several weeks ago, Longobardi wad slabbed In the wrist by two nicu who had been loitering near his home. The detective joined in tho search for his assailants, and the police row couple this attack with tho plot divulged di-vulged in the letters received by Longobardi. Lon-gobardi. Tho latter has been very vigorous and successful in tracing crime among Italians, and the plot to get rid of him is believed to have many ramifications. Postal Inspector Oldfield is positive that the suspect Collogero Vlccarrio, arrested today In Bellefontalne, was connected with the murder of the New York detective, Petrosino, in Italy, some months ago. "I base my belief," he said, "on the fact that this man Is known to havo left for Italy just before Petrosino was assassinated. I believe him to be one of the ring leaders of the Mafia of the United States and consider his capture of first importance." The government inspectors say much assistance wras given them by F. P. Diamio, an Italian secret service ser-vice man, connected with a detective agency. He ranked with Petrosino In his knowledge of Italian criminals and their ways. A black hand letter sent to John Amicon, the fruit dealer here. Is a sample of them all. It contains these statements: "Already our band has you down In the register of tho dead. Take the street, as your friend Petrosino did. Ugly wretch that you arc, that ou content yourself with trying to avoid the payment of the money, 510.000, but by the blood of God. we are back of you. No one can belong to our band who has notkilled ten persons. We have killed kings and emperor3. Consider a fly like you9 No; no: do not think it. We know that you arc rich and you must give up some blood. If you go to the police, you can count yourself dead." |