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ANOTHER FINE HAULBIG GANG OF COUNTERFEITERS BROKEN UP IN CLEARFIELD COUNTY-Tliree Rln^leadorM Arrouted and #3000 In £|»tirions Coin fonliNralod, To-icetlior Willi Tool* and Die*-One of the Prlsonem Turn* Stale** Evidence —Hadley Onus.; Caught.Altoona, Pa., Dec. 18.—I5y clever work, covering a period of some five weeks, I’nited States secret service officials ran down a gang of counterfeiters and coin makers last Saturday, and landed the three ringleaders in jail here yesterday.Solomon Stroup and Fred Stroup, father and son, headed.a gang operating over Clearfield, Clarion, and Cambria counties. Wm. McCartney-Thompson, a carpenter by occupation, but also on the make, was taken in as a circulator. The den is located at Cataract, a wild spot 10 miles out from Clearfield town, and complete outfits werejsecured in log cabins devoted to the nefarious work. A stock of coins of all denominations were found on the premises, equivalent to a spurious representation of $5,000.The Stroups have carried on their ■counterfeiting mint for the past four years, and have distributed untold sums over Central Pennsylvania. With some of the proceeds the old man bought a 400-acre tract near Clearfield, and the son has been preparing to do likewise.The officers caught them at night, and this arrest will lead to the destruction of a band of counterfeiters, whose operations have flooded some of the counties with counterfeits. The three leaders were given a hearing before United States Commissioner W. A. Ambrose yesterday afternoon and were held without bail. They were transferred to Pittsburg to-day. McCartney has turned state’sevidence and peached on the whole gang.United States Detective McSweeny and two assistants captured two counterfeiters, James Williams and Joel Kiddleman, at the Middleman farm, three miles northest of Jladley, Merger county, last week. They were caught with a considerable amount of freshly made counterfeit silver coin, and the moulds, acids and other tools and materials used in the manufacture of counterfeit coin in their possession. Williams is widely known as an expert and notorious counterfeiter and the United States government has been on his track ever since and previous to the arrest of Thomas Moffat and Charles A. Stewart, who were tried for passing counterfeit coin in Titusville last August before United States Commissioner lt;Jeorge A. Chase. Kiddleman is a rich farmer and supposed to be a confederate of Williams, the counterfeit coin being made on Kiddleman’s farm and shipped to the Southern states for circulation. They had a hearing before Commissioner Chase, of Titusville. United States District Attorney Allen attended the hearing. The prisoners were committed to Meadville jail.an*ChgivtludeiWnIIthe
Newspaper Details
Warren Mirror
Warren, Pennsylvania, US
Wed, Dec 19, 1888
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Martha Y.
GA, USA 12 Mar 2017
Other Publications Near Warren, Pennsylvania
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Warren County Observer
Warren Evening Times
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