Three Robbers Admit Marine's Murder on July 21, 1960, Near Kinston

Three Robbers Admit Marine’s Murder on July 21st Near Kinston

Three young men held since July 23rd in Washington, D.C., for armed robbery have admitted the murder of Sgt. Robert Eugene Schroeder near Kinston on the night of July 21st.

Harold A. Smith, 20, native of Mephis, Tenn., and dishonorable discharge from the Marine Corps, had admitted the actual murder, and Eugene Jacobs, 21, of Durham, a dishonorable Air Force discharge, and Jesse Perry, 20, also of Memphis, have admitted complicity in the brutal killing.

In a conversion made by smith to Washington officers and SBI Agent E.B. Pearce of Kinston last Friday Smith told the following story:

The three involved in the crime were riding in a rented car between Richlands and Kinston and the car gave out of gas. The first car that stopped to offer help was driven by Sgt. Schroeder, who was alone.

The trio asked the Marine veteran to push their car to a filling station. Schroeder refused but offered to ride one of them to a station.

Smith accepted the offer of a ride and shortly after getting in pulled out a .45 caliber automatic and took command of the car. Schroeder told him, so Smith told the officers, that he had known him in the Marine Corps.

This frightened Smith, who forced Schroeder to get in the boot of the car and he drove on toward Kinston. Still worrying about having been recognized, Smith says he deiced he would have to kill the Marine. He stopped his car on the US 70 bypass near the “motel” went to the rear, opened the boot and fired three shots into the Ohioan’s body—either of which would have killed him.

Smith says he then turned around and went back to pick up the other two who were left with the rented car. Smith says he told them what he had done, they all went through the Marine’s pockets. Then they all got in the dead man’s car and drove it to George Robbins’ filling station between Kinston and La Grange, where they abandoned it and hitch-hiked on to Washington, where on Saturday night they were caught after the armed robbery of a tavern.

Smith still had the murder gun, and was wearing a ring given to Schroeder by an Akron, Ohio girl. The gun and ring led to the connection with the murder, and Smith’s confession last week. An extradition hearing for the trio is set for September 28th in Washington.

From the front page of the Jones County Journal, Trenton, N.C., Thursday, September 1, 1960