In September 1913, a quiet Los Angeles office became the scene of a brutal and puzzling murder.
Mrs. Rebecca P. Gay, a religious practitioner and the divorced wife of a wealthy San Diego man, was found dead in her fifth-floor office, killed with a piece of gas pipe. The crime appeared to have taken place the night before, but the details only deepened the mystery.
Her money had not been taken.
Religious newspapers had been placed over her body.
And, according to police, there were signs that the killer may have tried to throw her from the office window.
With no clear motive and few clues left behind, investigators were faced with a disturbing question: who wanted Rebecca Gay dead?
Woman Is Found Dead In Office
LOS ANGELES, California. — The body of Mrs. Rebecca P. Gay, a religious practitioner, was found in her office this morning, where she ad been murdered with a piece of gas pipe.
There was evidence that the murderer had tried to hurl the body of his victim from the window of the office, which was on the fifth floor.
The police discovered no evidence of a motive for the crime which apparently was committed early last night. The body was covered with copies of religious newspapers, and the woman’s money was in her purse.
Mrs. Gay was the divorced wife of John J. Gay, a wealthy San Diego man, and was between 40 and 50 years old. A brother, Lemuel Connor, is an attorney in Natchez Mississippi.
The Ogden Standard. Ogden City, Utah. September 27, 1913.
