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Says Coroner in Making His Verdict.YET SHE !8 INDICTED BY GRAND JURY FOR A MURDERDead Woman Accused So as to Hold Lamphere as Accessory to SlayingHelgelein—Lamphere Held Under Several Indictments—His Attorneys Are Expected to Spring a Surprise at the Trial.LA PORTE, Ind., May 29.—The LaiPorte County grand jury indicted Mrs.Belle Gunness for the murder of Andrew Helgelein of Mansfield, S. I., and at the same time returned seven true bills against Ray Lamphere. No warrant Was issued for Mrs. Gunness, as she was declared officially dead by the verdict of Coroner Mack, but in order to vote a true bill against Lamphere as aaaccessory in the killing of Helgelein it was necessary to indict Mrs. Gunness a3 i the principal.Lamphere now stands before the bar of justice officially charged with arson,five murders, and being an accessory in the Helgelein murder. In the indictment for arson it is charged that Lamphere set lire to the Gunness homo and destroyed it.Separate bills were voted against Lamphere for the murder, in the first degree, of Mrs. Belle Gunness and her three children, Philip Gunness, Myrtle Sorenson, and Lucy Sorenson.In charging Lamphere with the murder of Andrew Helgelein, the indictment says that “Ray Lamphere on Jan. 14, 190S, in the State of Indiana and the County of La Porte, did unlawfully, feloniously, purposely, and with premeditated malice,kill and murder Andrew R. Helgelein, the death of said Andrew K. Helgelein having been caused by Ray Lamphere by means unknown to the grand jury.”Belle Gunness Indicted.The striking and unusual feature of the seventh true bill is its indictment of the dead woman. It reads: “The gr.On-7jfiry presents that Belle Gunner*, h i f the County of La Porte and lt;tc • fIndiana, on the i hh day or i:’-r'wdid unnyw realty,' 'telonion:*- * *-fully, and with premeditated ma lire*, kill and murder Andrew K. Helgc loin, lie means and manner of such killing b mg to the grand jury unknown.”Appended thereto is the indictment of Lamphere as an accessory, it being charged that “Lamphere unlawfully,purposely, wilfully, and feloniously didharbor, conceal, and assist Belle Gunness in the disposition of the body of Andrew Iv. Helgelein, with the intent that he, Ray Lamphere, might escape from detection, arrest, capture, and punishment, and Lamphere did assist Belle Gunness in the disposition of the body of Andrew K. Helgelein after he, Lamphere, well knew and was informed that Belle Gunness had killed and murdered Andrew K. Helgelein.”On the indictments are indorsed the names of Albert F. Smutzer, William E. Anstiss, John Rye, Charles Smith, Elizabeth Smith, Daniel Hutson. Roy Marr, William Humphrey, Fred Vorhes, and David Havens, as witnesses.Lamphere Not Arraigned.Lamphere was not arraigned, and this will probably not be done until the cases arc set for trial. Bench warrants, issued by Judge J. C. Richter, were served upon Lamphere in jail. Ho expressed but slight surprise, as the returning of the indictments had been anticipated. In the arson case, it was noted that bond could be furnished in the sum of $5,000, but as the bond is refused in the other six indictments, there is no chance for Lamphere to even figure on availing himself of the former.“I shall ask to have the cases set down for early trial this term,” said Prosecutor Smith. “The State is ready for trial at once, but on account of other criminal work, which will take up all of next week, it will be impossible to reach the Lamphere cases until in June.”However, preparations to prosecute Lamphere have been commenced. Surprise was occasioned by tho announcement from the prosecutor’s office that in all likelihood Lamphere will be tried first for the murder of Andrew Helgelein, the South Dakota ranchman.The State claims its evidence in thia case is strong. Attorney Worden, for the defense, said that the defense would not rely entirely upon an alibi to clear Lamphere of the murder charges, but what the line of defense would he aside from the efforts to prove an alibi was not disclosed.Jcn.Mcn May Re Victim.Friends of Olaf Jensen of Capron, 111., have written Sheriff Smutzer that he left there two years ago with all his money —about $1,000—to marry a wealthy widow in Northern Indiana, near Chicago, but has not been heard from since, although he promised to write as soon as he got located.The friends say he became acquainted with the widow through a matrimonial advertisement in a Scandinavian paper. They are confident he was one of Mrs. Gunness’ victims.Declaring that they came to their deaths through felonious homicide. Coroner Mack filed his reports in the,deaths of four more victims of the Gunness farm.The verdicts are in the cases of Jennie Olson of Chicago, Ole Budsberg of loin, Wis., and two unidentified bodies, one male and the other female. The coroner holds that the persons who are responsible for their deaths are to him unknown. Six bodies still remain to bereported on.Sheriff Smutzer and Miner Schultz in sorting the tailings from the sluice box found a large gold band ring with tho following engraving, “S. B., May 28,1902.” Officers believe this belonged to one of the first victims of the woman.Sheriff Smutzer received from I. N. Youtsler of Caspar, Wyo., a razor, which lie claims ho was given by Jennie Olsen one night about a year and a half ago when he stopped over night at the Gunness farm. The razor is of an oldSwedish make and scratched on one sidewith a knife is the name of “T. Lind, Chicago,” and on the reverse side threeof the Odd Fellows’ emblem. The authorities have started an inquiry tolearn if Lind was one of Mrs. Gunness’ victims.One of the visitors at the sheriff's of-
Newspaper Details
Chicago Saturday Blade
Chicago, Illinois, US
Sat, May 30, 1908
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
PA, USA 26 May 2021
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