Wilmington, March 31—J.W. Bell, free lance dry raider of Wilmington, died in a local hospital shortly after noon today from gunshot wounds which he suffered while investigating the location of a whiskey still which he had discovered in a swamp seven miles from the city.
Bell was found lying in the swamp by Sheriff G.C. Jackson yesterday afternoon with both eyes shot out and his face horribly powder burned. He had been missing from his home fo over 24 hours when a search was instituted.
He is believed to have been shot down Monday afternoon while creeping up upon the still which showed evidence of having been in operation recently. He lay in the swamp unconscious in a drizzle of rain until yesterday afternoon. His automobile was found at Oleander, a fashionable suburb three miles from the still site, by searchers early yesterday. He is believed to have parked it out of the danger zone since his tires have been cut off in recent weeks by persons who are supposed to oppose the Volstead law.
I.W. Harrellson, deputy United States marshal missing from his office since Monday and believed to have accompanied Bell on the raid, showed up last night. He frequently worked with the raider. He said he had been home since Monday and did not know Bell was raiding.
Search for the missing man was not begun until yesterday morning. Mrs. Bell advised the sheriff at that time that she was worried. Nearly a half hundred persons joined in the search.
County and city officers working jointly in the matter are without any thing of a tangible nature to proceed on and with the exception of one or two slight clues have nothing to work on.
From page 2 of the Goldsboro News, Thursday morning, April 1, 1926
newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn93064755/1926-04-01/ed-1/seq-2/
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