1932 - THE LINDBERGH BABY KIDNAPPING

 

May 12, 1932 - Lindbergh Baby Found Murdered

Every newspaper in America called it "The Crime of the Century."  Each had a theory, many filled with suppositions, which sometimes were more upsetting than the true facts of the case. 

History 

On the night of March 1, 1932, sometime between 9pm and 10pm, Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr., the 20-month old son of famous aviator Colonel Charles Lindbergh, was kidnapped from the bedroom of their Hopewell, New Jersey home.  

Shortly after 10pm, Betty Gow, the baby's nurse told Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh that the baby was missing.  Mrs. Lindbergh was pregnant with another child and just a few months within delivery date.  

The estate was searched several times and after returning from one search, a ransom note was found on the windowsill in the nursery. It demanded $50,000. 

Subsequent investigation after finding the note revealed mud spatters on the nursery floor, some vague footprints outside, under the nursery window, and two sections of a ladder that had been placed against the window were found split. No blood or fingerprints were found.

The New Jersey State Police took over the investigation. Eventually they brought in the Bureau of Investigation, an agency that later became the FBI. 

Wanted Poster for Lindbergh Baby

There was no contact from the kidnappers over the next four days so Colonel Lindbergh made appeals for friends to communicate with the kidnappers, saying he was so desperate that he would even ask gangsters to contact them.  Wanted posters appeared all over the tri-state area. His appeals to the kidnappers to begin negotiations fell on deaf ears. Meanwhile searches of the property were conducted every day to no avail.

It was kind of curious that the search parties only searched in Hopewell and within the Lindbergh property, but never searched areas outside of their town of Hopewell.   

On March 6, 1932, Colonel Lindbergh received a second ransom note, now demanding $70,000.  From then on, the kidnappers communicated with sending multiple ransom letters. The newspapers said it was like a circus atmosphere, trying to keep up with multiple ransom letters, weeding out the crazies from the people who genuinely wanted to help, and letters to the editor expressing opinion, suspicion and sorrow. 

On March 8th, Colonel Lindbergh's attorney received the third note from the kidnappers saying they would not accept any intermediaries and wanted to continue contact only through the newspaper.  Private investigators were hired and news conferences were held.

Also on March 8th, a retired schoolteacher, Dr. Condon, published an article in the Bronx Home News offering to be the go-between. If he was accepted, he said he would kick in an extra $1,000 toward the ransom money. 

Lo an behold, Colonel Lindbergh accepted him and on March 10th, he gave Dr. Condon $70,000 in bills that were Gold Certificates.  The kidnappers evidently found Dr. Condon acceptable too because the fourth note was sent directly to him, reiterating the demand for $70,000 and also accepting him as the go-between.  Dr. Condon immediately began negotiations by placing ads in the newspaper, using a code name of Jafsie.  

No one questioned this turn of events in 1932, but today in 2015, it would be suspicious to say the least for a total stranger to volunteer out of the blue to act as a go-between, and be acceptable to the family, especially when this family had the money and the celebrity notoriety to have a professional or at least someone they knew to negotiate for them.  

An anonymous phone call came shortly after 8pm on March 12 followed by a fifth ransom letter that was delivered by Joseph Perrone, a taxicab driver, who said a stranger gave it to him to deliver. The letter said another note would be found under a stone about 100 feet from a particular subway station. This became the sixth note which instructed him to meet in the Woodlawn Cemetery, near 233rd Street and Jerome Avenue.

Accompanied by a bodyguard just to the cemetery entrance, Dr. Condon met alone with a man who called himself “John.” After they discussed payment of the ransom money, Dr. Condon asked for proof of life before John left the cemetery.  Starting the next day, Dr. Condon ran numerous ads in the newspaper telling the kidnappers he had the ransom money and wanted to pay it but they needed to contact him with proof of life.   

A seventh note came to Dr. Condon on March 16 which included a baby’s sleeper as proof. Dr. Condon delivered them to the Lindbergh estate where they were positively identified. There was no contact from the kidnappers for the next five days. 

On March 21, an eighth note came demanding “complete compliance” of the Lindberghs. Then oddly enough, they offered information that “the kidnapping had been planned for one year. "   

For the next eight days, there was no contact from the kidnappers. However, on March 29, near the entrance to the Lindbergh estate, the baby's nurse found the child’s thumb guard that he was wearing when he was kidnapped. 

On March 30, Dr. Condon got the ninth note that threatened to increase the ransom demand to $100,000.  It was possible the kidnappers were not happy with the communication in the newspapers because the note also said they would not use Dr. Condon’s code to continue talking in the newspaper ads. 

Dr. Condon received the tenth note on April 1, 1932 telling him to have the money ready the next night. Dr. Condon answered that he would by placing an ad in the Press. 

On April 2, 1932, a taxi driver delivered the eleventh note which instructed him where to find the twelfth note which was under a stone in front of a greenhouse at 3225 East Tremont Avenue, Bronx, New York. Then he was to go to the cemetery again to meet with "John."

That same evening at the cemetery, Dr. Condon asked John if the ransom demand could go back to $50,000. Dr. Condon handed him $50,000 and was given a receipt for the money along with the thirteenth note. John left the park as Dr. Condon read the note.  This was the last contact with the kidnappers.

The thirteenth note gave instructions that the child would be found on a boat named “Nellie” at Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.  Over the following two days several unsuccessful searches for the baby were made at Martha’s Vineyard.  The only lead was John. When Dr. Condon was questioned by the State Police, he said he was positive that he would recognize “John” if he ever saw him again.

For five weeks, there was no contact and searches were unsuccessful.

At 3:15pm on May 12, 1932, in the town of Mount Rose in Mercer County, New Jersey, a group of workmen found the body of the kidnapped baby partly buried and badly decomposed.

Before the family was notified, the police officials were called: Inspector Harry Walsh of Jersey City, Sergeant Moffett of the Newark Police, and Lieutenant Keaton of the New Jersey State Police.

The site they found was gruesome. The child's head was crushed, there was a hole in his skull and at least one of his limbs were missing. An impression of a footprint was found on his flannel undergarments, as if the kidnapper had tried to squish the body down into the ground.

When they were pretty sure that this was the Lindbergh baby, word was sent to the Lindbergh estate that the kidnapped child had been found dead. 

Inspector Walsh sent a flannel shirt and an undershirt with an embroidered collar for the Lindbergh's to identify. Mrs Lindbergh and her mother were so distraught that Betty Gow, the baby's nurse, identified them as the clothes she put on the baby three hours before he was kidnapped. 

She also went to the morgue and further identified him by certain marks on the body. However, the Medical Examiner said she had not identified the baby entirely to his satisfaction.  He wanted a Lindbergh family member to make a positive identification.  Mr. Lindbergh was not in residence; it was believed he had been in Virginia for three weeks following up leads about the kidnappers. Mrs. Lindbergh made a positive identification.

The next day the Coroner completed the post mortem examination.  The family immediately had the body cremated. 

The Coroner’s report said the child had been dead for about two months, likely the full 72 days since the kidnapping, and that death was caused by two heavy blows to the head. One blow caused a fracture on the top left of the head extending to just behind the left ear. The other left a hole half an inch in diameter in the back of the right ear, which was assumed at first to be a bullet wound.

There was police speculation on the possibility that the kidnappers killed the baby because they became frightened and alarmed by numerous search parties.

 The Crimeof the Century continued with the Trial of the Century. On April 3, 1936, Bruno Hauptman was electrocuted for murder in the first degree.

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