Kidnapping
On March 1, 1932, the 20-month-old son of aviator Charles Lindbergh was kidnapped from his room on the second floor of the Lindbergh's house near Hopewell, NJ. The NJ State Police were in charge of the investigation, but on March 2, J. Edgar Hoover offered them the full assistance and cooperation of the Bureau. A broken ladder, muddy footprints, and a ransom note for $50,000 were all found. Eleven more ransom notes, with new instructions and demands for increasing amounts of money, were delivered by various means over the next month. On May 12, the child's body was found, partially buried a little over four miles from home. After some of the gold certificates from the ransom payouts surfaced in August 1934, a bank manager called the New York City Bureau Office. Agents traced it to a gas station, where Bruno Richard Hauptmann had paid for five gallons of gasoline using a $10 gold certificate. Hauptmann was arrested, tried, convicted, and executed for the murder, and the FBI Lab provided a critical role in the trial.
Congress later passed the "Lindbergh Law" which authorized the FBI to investigate kidnappings where the victim had been taken across state lines. Today, the FBI can investigate any disappearance or kidnapping of a child of a "tender age."
Lindbergh Kidnapping
Gas CanFBILindbergh Kidnapping
On September 19, 1934, Bruno Richard Hauptmann was taken into custody and was indicted for extortion a week later. His arrest brought an end to the more than two-year-long investigation into the kidnapping and murder of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., the 20-month old son of famous aviator Charles Lindbergh.Charles Lindbergh, Jr. was kidnapped at about 9:00 p.m. on March 1, 1932, from the nursery on the second floor of the Lindbergh home near Hopewell, New Jersey. Lindbergh's absence was soon discovered and, during a search of the home, a ransom note demanding $50,000 was found on the nursery window sill.
The First Ransom Note
Over the course of the next month, the Lindbergh family received 12 more ransom notes and eventually ended up paying $50,000 through a go-between, Dr. Condon, to a mysterious man known only as "John." Upon receipt of the money, "John" handed over a note containing instructions that the kidnapped child could be found on a boat named "Nellie" near Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. Two searches of the area were made, but both were unsuccessful.
On May 12, 1932, the body of the kidnapped baby was accidentally found, partly buried and badly decomposed, about 4.5 miles southeast of the Lindbergh home. The coroner's examination showed that the child had been dead for about two months and that his death was caused by a blow on the head. Ten days later, at the order of President Herbert Hoover, the FBI offered its assistance to the investigation; the New Jersey State Police led the New Jersey component of the investigation and the New York Police Department ran the New York City component. Eventually President Roosevelt put the FBI in charge of the federal component of the investigation.
In all, the FBI covered thousands of leads across the United States. Many of those leads were false, but the net began to close when the Federal Reserve Bank of New York discovered 296 $10 gold certificates and one $20 gold certificate that were all from the same $50,000 ransom that the Lindberghs had paid to "John." Handwriting experts examined the notes and determined that all the notes were written by the same person and that the writer was of German nationality but had spent time in America. Dr. Condon described "John" as Scandinavian and, believing he could identify him, spent considerable time viewing photographs of possible suspects and known criminals. The ladder used by the kidnapper was also painstakingly examined, and testimony by an expert on its construction later played a critical role in the trial of the kidnapper.
The break in the case came on September 15, 1934, when an alert gas station attendant received another of the ransom bills to pay for five gallons of gasoline. The gas station attendant, suspicious of the $10 gold certificate, recorded on the bill the license number of the automobile driven by the purchaser. This license number came back to identify the subject as Bruno Richard Hauptmann. Hauptmann's house was closely surveilled by federal and local authorities until he appeared on September 19, 1934, and was promptly taken into custody.
The evidence against Hauptmann came together quickly. One of the pieces of evidence tying him to the kidnapping: a gas can, found in his garage, in which Hauptmann hid the gold certificates.
Lindberg Baby Gas Can
Was found in the garage of Bruno Richard Hauptmann. Gold certificates hidden inside the gas can tied Hauptmann to the Lindbergh kidnapping.Hauptmann's trial began on January 3, 1935, in Flemington, New Jersey, and lasted five weeks. Tool marks on the ladder matched tools owned by Hauptmann, wood in the ladder was found to match wood used as flooring in his attic, Dr. Condon's telephone number and address were found scrawled on a door frame inside a closet, and handwriting on the ransom notes matched samples of Hauptmann's handwriting. On February 13, 1935, the jury returned a verdict: Hauptmann was guilty of murder in the first degree, and he was sentenced to death. A series of appeals failed to overturn the sentence, and on April 3, 1936, at 8:47 p.m., Bruno Richard Hauptmann was put to death.
The Lindbergh kidnapping happened while Congress was debating a federal kidnapping act, and the nation's horror at the crime certainly helped the quick passage of the bill that became known as the "Lindbergh Law." It authorized the FBI to investigate kidnappings where it was thought the victim had been taken across state lines.
KIDNAPPINGSince then, the law has evolvedToday's kidnapping law authorizes us to investigate any reported mysterious disappearance or kidnapping involving a child of "tender age"-usually 12 or younger. However, the FBI can become involved with any missing child under the age of 18 as an assisting agency to the local police department. There does not have to be a ransom demand, and the child does not have to cross the state lines or be missing for 24 hours. Research indicates the quicker the reporting of the disappearance or abduction, the more likely the successful outcome in returning the child unharmed.
Lindbergh KidnappingFBILindbergh Kidnapping
On a beautiful 390-acre estate on the rural outskirts of Hopewell, New Jersey, Charles Lindbergh and his wife Anne hoped to stay out of the constant glare of the media spotlight in the years following the aviator's historic non-stop flight across the Atlantic. It was not to be. In 1932, a crime took place that stunned the nation and made the Lindberghs and their ensuing tragedy front-page news for months to come.The Kidnapping
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., 20-month-old son of the famous aviator and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, was kidnapped about 9:00 p.m., on March 1, 1932, from the nursery on the second floor of the Lindbergh home near Hopewell, New Jersey. The child's absence was discovered and reported to his parents, who were then at home, at approximately 10:00 p.m. by the child's nurse, Betty Gow. A search of the premises was immediately made and a ransom note demanding $50,000 was found on the nursery window sill. After the Hopewell police were notified, the report was telephoned to the New Jersey State Police, who assumed charge of the investigation.During the search at the kidnapping scene, traces of mud were found on the floor of the nursery. Footprints, impossible to measure, were found under the nursery window. Two sections of the ladder had been used in reaching the window, one of the two sections was split or broken where it joined the other, indicating that the ladder had broken during the ascent or descent. There were no blood stains in or about the nursery, nor were there any fingerprints.
Household and estate employees were questioned and investigated. Colonel Lindbergh asked friends to communicate with the kidnappers, and they made widespread appeals for the kidnappers to start negotiations. Various underworld characters were dealt with in attempts to contact the kidnappers, and numerous clues were advanced and exhausted.
A second ransom note was received by Colonel Lindbergh on March 6, 1932, (postmarked Brooklyn, New York, March 4), in which the ransom demand was increased to $70,000. A police conference was then called by the governor at Trenton, New Jersey, which was attended by prosecuting officials, police authorities, and government representatives. Various theories and policies of procedure were discussed. Private investigators also were employed by Colonel Lindbergh's attorney, Colonel Henry Breckenridge.
The third ransom note was received by Colonel Lindbergh's attorney on March 8, informing that an intermediary appointed by the Lindberghs would not be accepted and requesting a note in a newspaper. On the same date, Dr. John F. Condon, Bronx, New York City, a retired school principal, published in the "Bronx Home News" an offer to act as go-between and to pay an additional $1,000 ransom.
The following day the fourth ransom note was received by Dr. Condon, which indicated he would be acceptable as a go-between. This was approved by Colonel Lindbergh. About March 10, 1932, Dr. Condon received $70,000 in cash as ransom, and immediately started negotiations for payment through newspaper columns, using the code name "Jafsie."
About 8:30 p.m., on March 12, after receiving an anonymous telephone call, Dr. Condon received the fifth ransom note, delivered by Joseph Perrone, a taxicab driver, who received it from an unidentified stranger. The message stated that another note would be found beneath a stone at a vacant stand, 100 feet from an outlying subway station. This note, the sixth, was found by Condon, as indicated. Following instructions therein, the doctor met an unidentified man, who called himself "John," at Woodlawn Cemetery, near 233rd Street and Jerome Avenue. They discussed payment of the ransom money. The stranger agreed to furnish a token of the child's identity. Condon was accompanied by a bodyguard, except while talking to "John." During the next few days, Dr. Condon repeated his advertisements, urging further contact and stating his willingness to pay the ransom.
A baby's sleeping suit, as a token of identity, and a seventh ransom note were received by Dr. Condon on March 16. The suit was delivered to Colonel Lindbergh and later identified. Condon continued his advertisements. The eighth ransom note was received by Condon on March 21, insisting on complete compliance and advising that the kidnapping had been planned for a year.
On March 29, Betty Gow, the Lindbergh nurse, found the infant's thumb guard, worn at the time of the kidnapping, near the entrance to the estate. The following day the ninth ransom note was received by Condon, threatening to increase the demand to $100,000 and refusing a code for use in newspaper columns. The tenth ransom note, received by Dr. Condon, on April 1, 1932 instructed him to have the money ready the following night, to which Condon replied by an ad in the Press. The eleventh ransom note was delivered to Condon on April 2, 1932, by an unidentified taxi driver who said he received it from an unknown man. Dr. Condon found the twelfth ransom note under a stone in front of a greenhouse at 3225 East Tremont Avenue, Bronx, New York, as instructed in the eleventh note.
Shortly thereafter, on the same evening, by following the instructions contained in the twelfth note, Condon again met whom he believed to be "John" to reduce the demand to $50,000. This amount was handed to the stranger in exchange for a receipt and the thirteenth note, containing instructions to the effect that the kidnapped child could be found on a boat named "Nellie" near Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. The stranger then walked north into the park woods. The following day an unsuccessful search for the baby was made near Martha's Vineyard. The search was later repeated. Dr. Condon was positive that he would recognize "John" if he ever saw him again.
On May 12, 1932, the body of the kidnapped baby was accidentally found, partly buried, and badly decomposed, about four and a half miles southeast of the Lindbergh home, 45 feet from the highway, near Mount Rose, New Jersey, in Mercer County. The discovery was made by William Allen, an assistant on a truck driven by Orville Wilson. The head was crushed, there was a hole in the skull and some of the body members were missing. The body was positively identified and cremated at Trenton, New Jersey, on May 13, 1932. The Coroner's examination showed that the child had been dead for about two months and that death was caused by a blow on the head.
The Investigation: 1932-1934
On March 2, 1932, after a conference with the Attorney General, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover had contacted the headquarters of the New Jersey State Police at Trenton, New Jersey. He officially informed the organization that the U.S. Department of Justice would afford Colonel H. Norman Schwarzkopf, the Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, the assistance and cooperation of the FBI in bringing about the apprehension of the parties responsible for the kidnapping. He advised the New Jersey State Police that they could call upon the Bureau for any facilities or resources which the latter might be capable of extending. The special agent in charge of the New York City Office of the Bureau, which at that time covered the New Jersey district, was instructed accordingly and, upon instructions from the Director, the special agent in charge communicated with the New Jersey State Police and the New York City Police, offering any assistance which the Bureau might be able to lend in this matter.During the next few weeks the Bureau was acting merely in an auxiliary capacity, there being no federal jurisdiction. However, on May 13, 1932, the President directed that all governmental investigative agencies should place themselves at the disposal of the state of New Jersey and that the FBI should serve as a clearinghouse and coordinating agency for all investigations in this case conducted by federal investigative units.
On May 23, 1932, the FBI in New York City informed banks in greater New York that the Bureau was the coordinating agency for all governmental activity in the case. A close watch for ransom money was requested.
The New Jersey State Police announced on May 26, 1932, the offer of a reward not to exceed $25,000 for information resulting in the apprehension and conviction of the kidnapper or kidnappers. In compliance with a request made by Colonel Schwarzkopf, copies of this notice of reward were forwarded by the FBI to all law enforcement officials and agencies throughout the United States.
On June 10, 1932, Violet Sharpe, a waitress in the home of Mrs. Lindbergh's mother, Mrs. Dwight Morrow, who had been under investigation by the authorities, committed suicide by swallowing poison when she was about to be requestioned. However, her movements on the night of March 1, 1932, had been carefully checked and it was soon definitely ascertained that she had no connection with the abduction.
In September, 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt stated in a meeting with Director Hoover that all work on the case be centralized in the Department of Justice. He requested the Director to convey his views to Attorney General Cummings with the suggestion that the Attorney General make a request of the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), either through the President or directly, for a detailed report of all work performed by the IRS Intelligence Unit. On October 19, 1933, it was officially announced that the FBI would have exclusive jurisdiction in so far as the Federal Government was concerned in the handling of any investigative features of the case.
The President's Proclamation requiring the return to the Treasury of all gold and gold certificates was a valuable aid in the case, inasmuch as $40,000 of the ransom money had been paid in gold certificates and, at the time of the Proclamation, a large portion of this money was known to be outstanding. Therefore, this phase of the investigation was emphasized.
On January 17, 1934, a circular letter was issued by the New York City Bureau Office to all banks and their branches in New York City, requesting an extremely close watch for the ransom certificates and, in February 1934, all Bureau Offices were supplied with copies of the Bureau's revised pamphlet containing the serial numbers of ransom bills.
The New York City Bureau Office distributed copies of this pamphlet to each employee handling currency in banks, clearinghouses, grocery stores in certain selected communities, insurance companies, gasoline filling stations, airports, department stores, post offices, and telegraph companies.
Following the distribution of these booklets containing the serial number of the ransom currency, there were also prepared and similarly distributed by the Bureau currency key cards which, in convenient form, set forth the inclusive serial numbers of all of the ransom notes which had been paid. This was followed by frequent personal contacts with bank officials and with individual employees in an effort to keep alive their interest.
Prior to this time, the passing of ransom bills had been reported to either the FBI, the New Jersey State Police, or the New York City Police Department, none of which had complete information on this point. Therefore, arrangements were effected whereby investigation of all such ransom bills detected in the future could be immediately conducted jointly by representatives of the three interested agencies.
One of the by-products of the case was a mass of misinformation received from well-meaning but uninformed, highly imaginative individuals, and a deluge of letters written by demented persons, publicity seekers, and frauds. It was essential, however, that all possible clues, regardless of the prospect of success, be carefully followed, and it was impossible in the vast majority of instances to determine at the inception whether they would be material or false.
On March 4, 1932, a con man named Gaston B. Means was approached by Mrs. Evalyn Walsh McLean, of Washington, D.C., who felt that she might be of material assistance to Colonel Lindbergh in procuring the return of his child. Mrs. McLean had become acquainted with Means as a result of some investigative work which means had performed for her husband some years before. Means informed her that he felt certain he could secure a contact with the kidnappers inasmuch as he had been invited to participate in a "big kidnapping" some weeks before but had declined. Means claimed that his friend was responsible for the Lindbergh kidnapping. The following day, Means reported to Mrs. McLean that he had made a contact with the persons who had the child. He successfully induced Mrs. McLean to hand over to him $100,000, to be used in paying the ransom which he said had been doubled. Until April 17, 1932, he kept Mrs. McLean waiting, daily expecting the return of the child. During this period, he purported to be effecting negotiations with the alleged leader of the kidnappers, whom he called "The Fox." Mrs. McLean finally requested the return of the $100,000 and additional money which she had advanced him for "expenses." When he failed to do so, the case was turned over to the FBI. Means and "The Fox," who was found to be Norman T. Whitaker, a disbarred Washington attorney, were apprehended, and Means was later convicted of embezzlement and larceny after trust, and sentenced to serve 15 years in a federal penitentiary. Whitaker and Means were later convicted of conspiracy to defraud, and were sentenced to serve two years each in a federal penitentiary.
There were other attempted frauds which required extensive investigations before they could be completely eliminated from consideration in connection with the Lindbergh case.
In all, there were literally thousands of leads in all sections of the United States which were followed to their definite conclusions by the Bureau. The results of all these investigations, no matter how trivial, were reported. The activities of the known and suspected members of the so-called "Purple Gang" of Detroit, and various rumors and allegations concerning this gang were carefully and thoroughly investigated. Numerous registries of boats were examined in a fruitless endeavor to locate the boat "Nellie," on which the baby was to have been found according to the 13th and last ransom note handed to Dr. Condon at the time he paid the ransom money to "John." Records of cemetery employees who were employed in various cemeteries in certain sections of New York City and near Hopewell, New Jersey, were examined. Information accumulated in various other kidnapping and extortion cases handled by the FBI was examined in closest detail and studied with particular reference to any bearing they might have upon the solution of the Lindbergh case. Hundreds of photographs and descriptive data of known criminals of all types and other possible suspects were exhibited to the few eye-witnesses in this case in an endeavor to identify the mysterious "John."
On May 2, 1933, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York discovered 296 ten-dollar gold certificates, and one $20 gold certificate, all Lindbergh ransom notes. These bills were included among the currency received at the Federal Reserve Bank on May 1, 1933, and apparently had been made in one deposit. Immediately upon the discovery of these bills, deposit tickets at the Federal Reserve Bank for May 1, 1933, were examined. One was found bearing the name and address of "J.J. Faulkner, 537 West 149th Street," and had marked thereon "gold certificates," "$10 and $20" in the amount of $2,980. Despite extensive investigation, this depositor was never located.
Examination of the ransom notes by handwriting experts resulted in a virtually unanimous opinion that all the notes were written by the same person and that the writer was of German nationality but had spent some time in America. Dr. Condon described "John" as Scandinavian, and believing he could identify the man, spent considerable time in viewing the numerous photographs of possible suspects and known criminals. In this connection, the FBI retained the services of an artist to prepare a portrait of "John" from descriptions furnished by Dr. Condon and Joseph Perrone, the taxi cab driver who had delivered one of the ransom letters to Dr. Condon.
In a further endeavor to identify the individual who received the ransom payment, representatives of the New York City Bureau Office engaged Dr. Condon to prepare a transcript of all conversations had by him with "John" on March 12 and April 2, 1932, the dates on which Dr. Condon personally contacted the kidnapper in order to negotiate the return of the child and the payment of the ransom. These conversations were, during March, 1934, transcribed in detail on phonograph records by Dr. Condon who imitated the pronunciations and dialect of "John." In this manner the nationality, education, mentality, and character of the kidnapper were more clearly defined and permanently preserved for future use.
Another interesting attempt to identify the kidnapper centered around the ladder used in the crime. Police quickly realized that it was crudely built, but built nonetheless by someone familiar with wood who was mechanically inclined. The ladder had been thoroughly examined for fingerprints and had been exhibited to builders, carpenters, and neighbors of the Lindberghs in vain. Slivers of the ladder even had been analyzed, and the types of wood used in the ladder had been identified. Perhaps a complete examination of the ladder by itself by a wood expert would yield additional clues, and in early 1933, such an expert was called in-Arthur Koehler of the Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture.
Koehler disassembled the ladder and painstakingly identified the types of wood used and examined tool marks. He also looked at the pattern made by nailholes, for it appeared likely that some wood had been used before in indoor construction. Koehler made field trips to the Lindbergh estate and to factories to trace some of the wood. He summarized his findings in a report, and later played a critical role in the trial of the kidnapper.
Hauptmann is Located
For a period of seven months prior to August 20, 1934, no gold certificates were discovered except for those received in the Federal Reserve Bank, previously mentioned.Starting on August 20, 1934, and extending into September, a total of 16 gold certificates were discovered, most of them in the vicinity of Yorkville and Harlem. The long-awaited opportunity had finally arrived. As each bill was recovered, a colored pin marking the location of the recovered bill was inserted in a large map of the Metropolitan Area, thus indicating the movements of the individual or individuals who might be passing the ransom money. When the first few made their appearance, it was decided to concentrate on gold certificates, as experience had proven the futility of tracing the ordinary currency included in the ransom money.
In keeping with the cooperative policy previously established with the New Jersey State Police and the New York City Police Department, teams composed of a representative of each of these police agencies and a special agent of the Bureau were organized to personally contact all banks in Greater New York and Westchester County. As a result, the various neighborhood banks discovered the bills close to the point at which they were passed, and it then became possible for the investigators to trace the bills to the person who had originally passed them.
For the first time in the history of the case, the investigators succeeded in finding that the description of the individual passing these bills fit exactly that of "John" as described by Dr. Condon. It was determined through the investigation that the bills were being passed principally at corner produce stores.
About 1:20 p.m. on September 18, 1934, the assistant manager of the Corn Exchange Bank and Trust Company, at 125th Street and Park Avenue, New York City, telephoned the New York City Bureau Office to advise that a $10 gold certificate had been discovered a few minutes previously by one of the tellers in that bank. It was soon ascertained that this bill had been received at the bank from a gasoline station located at 127th Street and Lexington Avenue, New York City. On September 15, 1934, an alert attendant had received a bill in payment for five gallons of gasoline from a man whose description fitted closely that of the individual who had passed other bills in recent weeks. The filling station attendant, being suspicious of the $10 gold certificate, recorded on the bill the license number of the automobile driven by the purchaser. This license number was issued to Bruno Richard Hauptmann, 1279 East 222nd Street, Bronx, New York.
Hauptmann's house was closely surveilled by federal and local authorities throughout the night of September 18, 1934, until at approximately 9:00 a.m. on September 19, 1934, an individual, closely fitting the description of "John," as supplied by Dr. Condon, and the description of the purchaser of the gasoline, as supplied by the service station attendant, left his house and entered his automobile parked nearby. He was promptly taken into custody by representatives of the three interested agencies.
After some investigating, he was found to be Bruno Richard Hauptmann, the individual to whom the automobile license had been issued, a German carpenter who had been in this country for approximately 11 years. A $20 gold ransom certificate was found on his person. His description fitted perfectly that of "John" as described by Dr. Condon, and in his house was found a pair of shoes which had been purchased with a $20 ransom bill recovered on September 8, 1934.
Hauptmann admitted several other purchases which had been made with ransom certificates. On the night of September 19, 1934, he was positively identified by Joseph Perrone as the individual from whom he had received the fifth ransom note to be delivered to Dr. Condon. The following day, ransom certificates in excess of $13,000 were found secreted in the garage of Hauptmann's residence. Shortly thereafter, he was identified by Dr. Condon as "John" to whom the ransom had been paid. It was also ascertained that he was in possession of a Dodge sedan automobile which answered the description of that seen in the vicinity of the Lindbergh home the day prior to the kidnapping.
Shortly after his apprehension, specimens of Hauptmann's handwriting were flown to Washington, D.C., where a study was made of them in the FBI Laboratory. A comparison of the writing appearing on the ransom notes with that of the specimens disclosed remarkable similarities in inconspicuous, personal characteristics and writing habits, which resulted in a positive identification by the handwriting experts of the Laboratory. Upon the apprehension of Hauptmann, it was found that he bore a striking resemblance to the portrait of "John" which had previously been prepared from descriptions furnished by Dr. Condon and Joseph Perrone.
Further investigation developed that Hauptmann, 35 years old, was a native of Saxony, Germany. He had a criminal record for robbery and had spent time in prison. Early in July 1923, he stowed away aboard the SSHanover at Bremen, Germany, and arrived in the Port of New York City on July 13, 1923. He was arrested and deported immediately. After another failed attempt at entry in August, Hauptman successfully entered the United States in November 1923, on board the George Washington. On October 10, 1925, Hauptmann married Anna Schoeffler, a New York City waitress. A son, Manfried, was born to them in 1933. During his illegal stay in New York City and until the spring of 1932, Hauptmann followed his occupation of carpenter. However, a short while after March 1, 1932, the date of the kidnapping, Hauptmann began to trade rather extensively in stocks and never worked again.
Indictment, Trial, and Execution
Hauptmann was indicted in the Supreme Court, Bronx County, New York, on charges of extortion on September 26, 1934, and on October 8, 1934, in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, he was indicted for murder. Two days later, the Governor of the State of New York honored the requisition of the Governor of the State of New Jersey for the surrender of Bruno Richard Hauptmann and on October 19, 1934, he was removed to the Hunterdon County Jail, Flemington, New Jersey, to await trial.The trial of Hauptmann began on January 3, 1935, at Flemington, New Jersey, and lasted five weeks. The case against him was based on circumstantial evidence. Tool marks on the ladder matched tools owned by Hauptmann. Wood in the ladder was found to match wood used as flooring in his attic. Dr. Condon's telephone number and address were found scrawled on a door frame inside a closet. Handwriting on the ransom notes matched samples of Hauptmann's handwriting.
On February 13, 1935, the jury returned a verdict. Hauptmann was guilty of murder in the first degree. The sentence: death. The defense appealed.
The Supreme Court of the State of New Jersey on October 9, 1935, upheld the verdict of the Lower Court. Hauptmann's appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States was denied on December 9, 1935, and he was to be electrocuted on January 17, 1936. However, on this same day the Governor of the State of New Jersey granted a 30-day reprieve and on February 17, 1936, Hauptmann was re-sentenced, to be electrocuted during the week of March 30, 1936. On March 30, 1936, the Pardon Court of the State of New Jersey denied Hauptmann's petition for clemency, and on April 3, 1936, at 8:47 p.m., Bruno Richard Hauptmann was electrocuted.
The KidnappingPBSCharles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr.
Born on June 22, 1930
The son of Charles Lindbergh, the famed aviator, and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, the daughter of a diplomat, Baby Charlie was destined for fame. But his parents could not have imagined just how famous their baby would become, nor could they have imagined the tragedy that would put him and themselves on the front pages of America's newspapers.Baby Charlie was suffering from a cold during the last weekend in February, 1932. On Tuesday, March 1, Charles and Anne were spending a quiet evening at home in Hopewell, New Jersey. Betty Gow, Charlie's nurse, rubbed medication on the baby's chest to relieve congestion. At about 7:30, Betty and Anne put Charlie Jr. to bed. Betty and the Lindberghs went on about their separate chores that night. At 10 p.m., Betty Gow made a horrible discovery -- baby Charlie was gone.
Charles Lindbergh later recounted his initial reactions: "...I went upstairs to the child's nursery, opened the door, and immediately noticed a lifted window. A strange-looking envelope lay on the sill. I looked at the crib. It was empty. I ran downstairs, grabbed my rifle, and went out into the night..."
The "strange-looking envelope" that Charles Lindbergh found on the window sill contained a badly written ransom note:
RANSOM NOTEDear Sir, Have 50,000$ redy 25000$ in 20$ bills 15000$ in 10$ bills and 10000$ in 5$ bills. After 2-4 days will inform you were to deliver the Mony. We warn you for making anyding public or for notify the Polise the child is in gut care. Indication for all letters are singnature and 3 holds.By 10:30 that night, radio news bulletins were announcing the story to the nation. Nearly every newspaper in the country gave the story prominent placement in their March 2 editions. Soon, sightings of the Lindbergh baby were coming from all quarters: California, Michigan, Mexico. None turned out to be genuine.
Lindbergh Baby Kidnapped
1932History.comMarch 1, 1932
In a crime that captured the attention of the entire nation, Charles Lindbergh Jr., the 20-month-old son of aviation hero Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, is kidnapped from the family's new mansion in Hopewell, New Jersey. Lindbergh, who became an international celebrity when he flew the first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, and his wife Anne discovered a ransom note demanding $50,000 in their son's empty room. The kidnapper used a ladder to climb up to the open second-floor window and left muddy footprints in the room.The Lindberghs were inundated by offers of assistance and false clues. Even Al Capone offered his help from prison. For three days, investigators found nothing and there was no further word from the kidnappers. Then, a new letter showed up, this time demanding $70,000.
The kidnappers eventually gave instructions for dropping off the money and when it was delivered, the Lindberghs were told their baby was on a boat called Nelly off the coast of Massachusetts. After an exhaustive search, however, there was no sign of either the boat or the child. Soon after, the baby's body was discovered near the Lindbergh mansion. He had been killed the night of the kidnapping and was found less than a mile from home. The heartbroken Lindberghs ended up donating the mansion to charity and moved away.
Lindberg BabySeptember 1934
The kidnapping looked like it would go unsolved until September 1934, when a marked bill from the ransom turned up. The gas station attendant who had accepted the bill wrote down the license plate number because he was suspicious of the driver. It was tracked back to a German immigrant and carpenter, Bruno Hauptmann. When his home was searched, detectives found a chunk of Lindbergh ransom money.
The Crime of the Century
Library of CongressLindbergh Baby Kidnapping
In the middle of the night, kidnappers climb a ladder to the second-story of the home of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh, abduct his son, and leave a ransom note demanding $50,000. The nationwide search goes on for months and the story dominates the headlines. Dubbed in the press as "the crime of the century."
TIMELINE: LINDBERG BABY March 1, 1932 20-month-old son of famous aviator Charles Lindbergh kidnapped from the 2nd floor nursery of the family home near Hopewell, NJ. Ransom note left behind. March 6, 1932 Second ransom note received postmarked from Brooklyn, NY. March 12, 1932 Dr. John F. Condon meets with kidnapper John about ransom money. March 16, 1932 Condon receives sleeping suit from kidnappers. April 2, 1932 11th and 12th ransom note received, Condon pays John's ransom. April 3, 1932 Failed search for baby in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. May 12, 1932 Remains of the Lindbergh baby found near home. May 26, 1932 New Jersey police issue a $25,000 reward for information. October 19, 1933 FBI gains jurisdiction over the case. August 20, 1934 More ransom gold notes found, lead police to Hauptmann. September 19, 1934 Hauptmann is arrested. September 20, 1934 Police find $13,000 of ransom money at Hauptmann's residence. September 26, 1934 Hauptmann is indicted for extortion. October 8, 1934 Hauptmann is indicted for murder of Lindbergh baby. January 3, 1935 Hauptmann's trial begins in New Jersey. February 13, 1935 Jury rules Hauptmann guilty of first-degree murder. April 3, 1936 Hauptmann is electrocuted for his crime. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
The abduction of aviator Charles Lindbergh's young son captivated the country in the 1930s.Inside the Mysterious Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping and Trial
Biography.com Trial of the Century
Americans' obsession with true crime and unsolved mysteries has led to an entire industry's worth of documentaries, TV networks, hit podcasts and a massive library of magazines and books about high-profile and very grizzly crimes. This fanaticism was built on a number of cultural, technological and media-related factors, which first came together in the early 1930s when famed aviator Charles Lindbergh's toddler son was kidnapped, and a national manhunt led to the first "Trial of the Century."The abduction caused a frenzy leading to the FBI's involvement in the case
Even though there were traces of forced entry, including a broken ladder and footprints on the ground beneath the nursery window, there was nothing immediately useful to either the local Hopewell police or the New Jersey State Police. By the next day, word had gotten out about the kidnapping, drawing scores of newspaper journalists, well-wishers and unsolicited volunteers to the Lindbergh residence, who just about wrecked the crime scene and made further retrieval of evidence impossible.The FBI also came calling that next day and its offer of help was far more useful. A young J. Edgar Hoover offered the New Jersey State Police the federal agency's full assistance in the investigation. Early on, however, it was Lindbergh himself that was largely overseeing the process, which put him in a position to accept help from associates with connections to organized crime - they suspected some kind of mob extortion plot - and a retired school principal in the Bronx named Dr. John F. Condon who took it upon himself to get involved in the high-stakes negotiations to come.
A tragic discovery near Lindbergh's home turned the case into a long-running mystery
On May 12, a little over a month after the disappointment in Massachusetts and 72 days after the baby first went missing, Charlie Jr.'s badly decimated body was found alongside a highway near the Lindbergh estate. The body was burned, partly decomposed, missing limbs and there was a hole drilled into its crushed skull. Advertisement - Continue Reading Below"It was as if some adult person had held the baby tightly in his arms and deliberately hammered the head with the purpose of causing instant death," the New Jersey State Police Chief, Col. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, wrote in a statement about the discovery. The New York Daily News, one of a dozen New York-based newspapers covering the story at the time, used the injuries to inform speculation about the kidnapper's motives.
"Although it was possible that the abduction and murder were spite work, it seemed more likely that the kidnapers, observing from this lookout point that the alarm was spreading from the Lindbergh home, became frightened, killed their small prisoner and fled," the newspaper's report read.
The vast national interest in the case and priority put on it by first Hoover and then President Franklin Roosevelt led to hundreds of tips from well-meaning (and some not-so-well-meaning) citizens. Over 200 people even "confessed" to the crime, but none of their stories held water.
FDR's decision to take the US off the gold standard led to discovering the kidnapper's identity
What did help, almost incidentally, was President Roosevelt's decision to take the United States off the gold standard in the summer of 1933. In doing so, he issued an executive order that recalled all gold coins and certificates worth more than $100, ordering that they be returned to the U.S. government. Every gold certificate had its own serial number, which allowed the government to track which had been returned to the Federal Reserve - including the notes given to the person who demanded the ransom for the Lindbergh baby.There were false alarms here, too, but ultimately, in the summer of 1934, there were 16 gold certificates spent in places in and around Manhattan's Upper East Side. This was significant because the neighborhood was at the time a major enclave of German immigrants and their first-generation descendants, and the handwriting on the ransom notes all suggested to experts that they were written by someone from Germany who spoke limited English.
One such certificate had a license plate number written on it, the result of a clerk being suspicious of the person who handed it to him. The note was ultimately traced back to Bruno Richard Hauptmann, a German immigrant who offered a lame story about inheriting the notes from a friend who had died. An investigation discovered more of the gold notes hidden in his garage and Dr. Condon's phone number, which was more than enough to charge him with a crime.
The Lindbergh Kidnapping
WIKIPEDIA Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr.
On March 1, 1932, Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. (born June 22, 1930), the 20-month-old son of aviators Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, was abducted from his crib in the upper floor of the Lindberghs' home, Highfields, in East Amwell, New Jersey, United States. On May 12, the child's corpse was discovered by a truck driver by the side of a nearby road.[In September 1934, a German immigrant carpenter named Bruno Richard Hauptmann was arrested for the crime. After a trial that lasted from January 2 to February 13, 1935, he was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. Despite his conviction, he continued to profess his innocence, but all appeals failed and he was executed in the electric chair at the New Jersey State Prison on April 3, 1936.
Hauptmann's guilt or lack thereof continues to be debated in the modern day. Newspaper writer H. L. Mencken called the kidnapping and trial "the biggest story since the Resurrection". Legal scholars have referred to the trial as one of the "trials of the century". The crime spurred the U.S. Congress to pass the Federal Kidnapping Act (commonly referred to as the "Little Lindbergh Law") which made transporting a kidnapping victim across state lines a federal crime.
The Kidnapping
At approximately 9 p.m. on March 1, 1932, the Lindberghs' nurse, Betty Gow, found that 20-month-old Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. was not with his mother, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, who had just come out of the bath. Gow then alerted Charles Lindbergh who immediately went to the child's room, where he found a ransom note, containing poor handwriting and grammar, in an envelope on the windowsill. Taking a gun, Lindbergh went around the house and grounds with the family butler, Olly Whateley; they found impressions in the ground under the window of the baby's room, pieces of a wooden ladder, and a baby's blanket. Whateley telephoned the Hopewell police department while Lindbergh contacted his attorney and friend, Henry Breckinridge, and the New Jersey state police.An extensive search of the home and its surrounding area was conducted by police from nearby Hopewell Borough in coordination with the New Jersey State Police.
After midnight, a fingerprint expert examined the ransom note and ladder; no usable fingerprints or footprints were found, leading experts to conclude that the kidnapper(s) wore gloves and had some type of cloth on the soles of their shoes. No adult fingerprints were found in the baby's room, including in areas witnesses admitted to touching, such as the window, but the baby's fingerprints were found.
Lindberg BabyThe Ransom Payment
The ransom was packaged in a wooden box that was custom-made in the hope that it could later be identified. The ransom money included a number of gold certificates; since gold certificates were about to be withdrawn from circulation, it was hoped greater attention would be drawn to anyone spending them. The bills were not marked but their serial numbers were recorded. Some sources credit this idea to Frank J. Wilson, others to Elmer Lincoln Irey.On April 2, Condon was given a note by an intermediary, an unknown cab driver. Condon met "John" and told him that they had been able to raise only $50,000. The man accepted the money and gave Condon a note saying that the child was in the care of two innocent women.
Discovery of the body
On May 12, delivery truck driver Orville Wilson and his assistant William Allen pulled to the side of a road about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) south of the Lindbergh home near the hamlet of Mount Rose in neighboring Hopewell Township. When Allen went into a grove of trees to urinate, he discovered the body of a toddler. The skull was badly fractured and the body decomposed, with evidence of scavenging by animals; there were indications of an attempt at a hasty burial. Gow identified the baby as the missing infant from the overlapping toes of the right foot and a shirt that she had made. It appeared the child had been killed by a blow to the head. Lindbergh insisted on cremation.In June 1932, officials began to suspect that the crime had been perpetrated by someone the Lindberghs knew. Suspicion fell upon Violet Sharpe, a British household servant at the Morrow home who had given contradictory information regarding her whereabouts on the night of the kidnapping. It was reported that she appeared nervous and suspicious when questioned. She died by suicide on June 20, 1932, by ingesting a silver polish that contained cyanide just before being questioned for the fourth time. Her alibi was later confirmed, and police were criticized for heavy-handedness.
Condon was also questioned by police and his home searched, but nothing incriminating was found. Charles Lindbergh stood by Condon during this time.
Tracking the ransom money
The investigators who were working on the case were soon at a standstill. There were no developments and little evidence of any sort, so police turned their attention to tracking the ransom payments. A pamphlet was prepared with the serial numbers on the ransom bills, and 250,000 copies were distributed to businesses, mainly in New York City. A few of the ransom bills appeared in scattered locations, some as far away as Chicago and Minneapolis, but those spending the bills were never found.
By a presidential order, all gold certificates were to be exchanged for other bills by May 1, 1933. A few days before the deadline, a man brought $2,980 to a Manhattan bank for exchange; it was later realized the bills were from the ransom. He had given his name as J. J. Faulkner of 537 West 149th Street. No one named Faulkner lived at that address, and a Jane Faulkner who had lived there 20 years earlier denied involvement.
Arrest of Hauptmann
During a thirty-month period, a number of the ransom bills were spent throughout New York City. Detectives realized that many of the bills were being spent along the route of the Lexington Avenue subway, which connected the Bronx with the east side of Manhattan, including the German-Austrian neighborhood of Yorkville.On September 18, 1934, a Manhattan bank teller noticed a gold certificate from the ransom; a New York license plate number (4U-13-41-N.Y) penciled in the bill's margin allowed it to be traced to a nearby gas station. The station manager had written down the license number because his customer was acting "suspicious" and was "possibly a counterfeiter". The license plate belonged to a sedan owned by Richard Hauptmann of 1279 East 222nd Street in the Bronx, an immigrant with a criminal record in Germany. When Hauptmann was arrested, he was carrying a single 20-dollar gold certificate and over $14,000 of the ransom money was found in his garage.
Hauptmann was arrested, interrogated, and beaten at least once throughout the following day and night.
Execution
Hauptmann turned down a large offer from a Hearst newspaper for a confession and refused a last-minute offer to commute his sentence from the death penalty to life without parole in exchange for a confession. He was electrocuted on April 3, 1936.
On March 1, 1932, the 20-month-old son of aviator Charles Lindbergh was kidnapped from his room on the second floor of the Lindbergh's house near Hopewell, NJ. The NJ State Police were in charge of the investigation, but on March 2, J. Edgar Hoover offered them the full assistance and cooperation of the Bureau. A broken ladder, muddy footprints, and a ransom note for $50,000 were all found.