Winston-Salem, April 6—Held in connection with an alleged conspiracy to burn the Victory Theatre in Mount Airy, Ralph Rothrock, young white man of this city, was arrested by Mount Airy police and made a signed confession of the alleged plot to burn the playhouse. The confession was made and signed in the office of Chief of Police J.A. Thomas, in this city and in the presence of Chief Thomas and the chief of the fire department of Mount Airy.
According to Rothrock’s sworn statement he worked for some time at the Victory Theatre in Mount Airy, but about three weeks ago he came back to this city. It was by request, he stated, that he came here, and he said that he wrote a letter to P.A. Boone, owner of the Broadway Theatre in Mount Airy, asking Boone if he didn’t want him to burn the Victory.
After returning to this city, Rothrock states he wrote the letter to Mr. Boone, signing it “Ned Nye.” The letter, which was exhibited in the office of Chief Thomas, stated in detail that the writer would burn the Victor Theatre for Boone, if he so desired, for the sum of $500. He explained in the letter that it would help Mr. Boone’s business and pointed out other attractive ways that the burning of the Victory would aid Mr. Boone in the conduct of his own theatre.
Receiving the letter, according to information from the Mount Airy authorities, Boone turned it over to the police, who instructed him to answer the letter, telling “Nye” that the proposition would be considered and requested that he come to Mount Airy. This he did.
“Nye,” alias Rothrock, states that he went to Mount Airy and that it was in conversation with Boone at this time that the latter told him that he did not do business in that way and had no desire to have his competitor burned out. Rothrock stated that he went to Mr. Marion, the owner of the Victory Theatre, and told him that he feared a conspiracy to burn his theatre.
The conversation with Marion occurred about two weeks ago, he stated, and he came back to this city and did not hear anything further until his arrest last night.
From page 8 of The Concord Daily Tribune, Wednesday, April 7, 1926
newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn92073201/1926-04-07/ed-1/seq-8/
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