LOS ANGELES TRAGEDY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20286, 20 December 1927, Page 9

LOS ANGELES TRAGEDY

BANKER’S CHILD MURDERED. LURED AWAY FROM SCHOOL. BODY RETURNED TO PARENTS. (Prea» Association—Bj Telegraph—OopyrlgM.) NEW YORK, December 18. Marion Parker, the 12-year-old daughter of Mr Paul Parker, a wealthy Los Angeles banker, was kidnapped, and her murdered and mutiliated body was returned to her parents upon payment of ransom. On Thursday a well-dressed young man appeared at the school at which the Parker children attended for Marion to accompany him to the office of her father who was taken suddenly ill and wanted her. The teachers consented, and within an hour the parents received a demand for ransom. The entire detective force set to work on the case, the distracted father being repeatedly warned over the telephone that any attempt to betray the kidnap pers to the police when the ransom was paid would mean the girl’s death. They demanded 72 20dol notes as ransom, otherwise the daughter would be killed. The father also received several notes, including two from his daughter, pleading with her father to accept the terms, as she was undergoing torture. Eventually the chief detectives acceptance of the offer. A telephone message then instructed Mr Parker o drive to a certain place for his daughter, who was seated in a car beside a man, to whom he handed 1500dol. The man drove a short distance, and lifted the apparently sleeping girl from the car to the ground and sped rapidly away. The father ran to the place, and found he girl dead and shockingly mutiliated.— Sydney Sun Cable. THE NATION HORRIFIED. SEARCH FOR THE MURDERER. POLICE ARREST A SUSPECT. NEW YORK, December 19. (Received Dec. 20, at 0.30 a.m.j Messages from Los Angeles say that the greatest man hunt in the history of California is' now on, search being made for the murderer of the 12-year-old Marion Parker, daughter of Mr Perry Parker, a prominent banker. Marion .vas kidnapped on December i 5, after whicu a ransom of ISOOdol was ■ demanded, which was quickly paid on Saturday night. Immediately afterwards the fiend piesented Mr Parker with the mutilated torso of his daughter, the remainder of the body being found later. It ban been carefully dissected and wrapped in five bundles, which were found at various points of the Public Park in Los Angeles. As a result of the discovery of the severed parts thousands of detectives and investigators have been ordered out by the city and country governments to watch for all possible races of the criminal, and the entire population of Los Angeles, aroused by the gruesome ness of the crime, are co-operating with the authorities to run down the murderer who is believed to be within the city. The police arrested a suspect, who said he was a college man and the son of a prominent doctor. His" finger-prints match those found on the bundles. After the radio station here had sent out an appeal for reward money, the public responded’ and sent in pledges necessitating a staff of 10 men to count the money and six girls to handle the telephone calls. Five thousand dollars were raised at 8 o’clock on Sunday even ing. Other radio stations are establishing sianilar funds, as horror and indignation sweep over the nation.—A. and N.Z. Cable.