The Wellsville Capture and Escape




























On Saturday October the 20th while Adam and Floyd awaited the return of Rose and Beulah,  Joe Fryman
a local resident who lived on Kountz Ave just between East Liverpool and Wellsville just next to Silver
Switch had decided to take a walk down to the Switch.  He was standing there talking to his son-in-law
Dave around 10am that morning.  Joe asked Dave if he would  haul a load of coal for him.  While the two
men were having a discussion  Joe  happened to look up the hill just above them and saw someone
dressed in white that looked like a woman.  He remarked to his son-in-law that she  looked like a good
looking woman. Then about a minute or two later he saw a man (Floyd) come down from the top of the hill
where the Israel's lived.  He saw him sit down near another man (Adam) who appeared to have been laying
down.  Joe then told his son-in-law  that he was going to investigate and told him it's a good excuse to go
looking for pears.

As both Joe and Dave walked right up to them, they ended up just opposite of where they were laying.  But
they were still in a  position that they couldn't make out who they were.  So they proceeded on going  up
and around a little more and came right down to where the pear tree was.  As Joe walked up a little more
he got as close to them as about 10' and spoke to both of them.  Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd was sitting
there and Adam was laying on a blanket.  They both spoke to him and  Floyd had said that they were
taking pictures.  Floyd then told them  we had a couple of girls and got lost, and that they are waiting for
them to come back.   Joe then became suspicious of what they were taking pictures of because of the
blankets and overcoats and cushions and other items laying around.

Joe Fryman and his son-in-law Dave then started off to look for more pears.  Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd
then asked them if they had lived right down the hill there; there's a house just a short way below.  Joe told
him no that he lived up the road.  Joe and Dave then left the area and  started down the hill.  Floyd then
hollered down to the men and asked that if we see a couple of girls down there on the road to tell them to
come on up, that we are waiting on them.   Joe Fryman then walked to Lon Israel's place and let him know
what was going on near his home and he relayed his story to him

Lon said that it looked kind of fishy to him and said why would they be wanting to take pictures with all that
junk.  Joe told him that it did look suspicious, and  asked Lon to call the police.  Lon Israel walked to Frail's
Store on route 7 at Kountz Ave and at approximately 11:30am called Chief Fultz and informed him of what
was going on.  Chief Fultz said he'd be up in a little bit.  Chief Fultz yelled out to the two men in his office
who were civilians not lawmen, "Come on boys and go with me".  Lon Israel returned and let Joe Fryman
know that he had called and the Chief, was on his way.  Joe waited about 5 minutes and thought he would
go down to Silver Switch  and wait for the Chief there on the road.  He had intended to show the Sheriff
where the men (Floyd and Adam) were but had missed him

Lon Israel then started down his driveway and met Chief Fultz, Grover Potts, and William Irwin near the
main road in front of his house.  Chief Fultz inquired of Lon if he knew where these men (Adam and Floyd)
were.  Lon didn't know exactly but said he knew just about where.  All started down the path and had
walked about 25' when Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd appeared from behind a bush and came right toward
us.  Floyd immediately demanded: "What do you want?" and jerked his gun out and said "Stick them up".  
Sheriff Fultz refused to put his hands up and replied "I won't put them up", and said "I am going down to
the brickyard to work and I don't see why I should put my hands up".  Floyd sharply replied:  "Don't come
another inch fellow or I will pump you".  At which time Sheriff Fultz replied: "You wouldn't shoot a working
man", at which time Sheriff Fultz kept on walking towards him.

Floyd began looking over Sheriff Fultz's shoulder when Sheriff Fultz made the decision while Floyd may
have been distracted to make a move to get his gun out.  Floyd immediately saw what was going on and
hollered at the Sheriff "Keep your hands away".  Floyd tried once again and told the Sheriff to "Stick up
your hands" to which the Sheriff replied, "I won't do it".  Sheriff Fultz walked right up to Floyd and actually
walked directly into Floyd's gun,  Floyd held the gun against the Sheriff's stomach.  The Sheriff then
walked on past him and Floyd side stepped over to the right out of the Sheriff's path keeping his gun on
him the whole time and let the 4 men walk right on past him while saying "Now, don't run or I will shoot
you".  Sheriff Fultz replied "There's nobody going to run" and as the Sheriff turned at the same time he
went after his gun once again.  Floyd barked "Keep your hands there and don't run".  Sheriff Fultz then
tried to increase the distance between him and the group thinking that would give him an equal chance at
a shoot out with Floyd but every time the Sheriff would try Floyd recognized what was going on and
hollered "Slow up, don't go to fast.  "If you run I will shoot you".  "Nobody's going to run, nobody's done
anything to run for" came the Sheriff's reply.   Floyd barked "Walk on down".  They walked down in single
file with Sheriff Fultz in the lead, followed by Deputy Grover Potts, Lon Israel, and then William Irwin in the
rear

As the group approached Adam, Sheriff Fultz called out to him, "Hello buddy, how are you, you seem to be
taking it pretty easy".  Adam replied "Yes", and smiled at the Sheriff.    Floyd then hollered to Adam, "Don't
let him kid you, shoot him, It's an officer, get him, shoot him". Sheriff Fultz turned toward Floyd and said
"You big yellow son of a bitch", and started firing at him..  Adam had rolled over on his blanket and with his
automatic in his right hand exchanging fire with Sheriff Fultz.  Floyd jumped behind  the 3 civilians as a
shield during the shootout.  Sheriff Fultz then turned his sights on Adam  firing 3 shots at him turning once
again and  firing at Floyd.  At this point in time Lon Israel,  Grover Potts and William Irwin ran to Lon's
house to aquire a couple of shotguns and shells leaving Sheriff Fultz alone.   Adam had turned over on
the blanket and pulled out a second gun.  Both Adam and Floyd continued to fire at the Sheriff.  Adam
went rolling and running down over the hill while Chief Fultz tried to reload his gun only managing to get 2
rounds loaded.     Chief Fultz began to run after Adam.  They both had run through the bushes and ran for
about 100 feet jumping over a fence then down into a house.  Just as Adam went to go for the door Sheriff
Fultz shot at him again.  The bullet hit about 2 feet from him about shoulder height.  Adam then threw up
his hands and said "I give up" and then started running towards Sheriff Fultz hollering, "For God's sake
don't shoot me, don't kill me, I am done"   Sheriff Fultz held his gun on Adam having him walk backward to
him just close enough so that he could frisk him.    At that moment in time Sheriff Fultz nor the other men
knew who these men where

During the time that Sheriff Fultz began chasing Adam,  Floyd had ran over to the blanket and picked up
the Thompson machine gun.    Floyd then took off running up along the edge of the briars and grass and
bushes until he hit the road right past Lon Israel's house.  At that time  Grover Potts and William Irwin had
seen Floyd coming.  Floyd was about 100 feet away coming over the hill when both fired at Floyd thru the
brushes and trees with their double barrel 12ga shotguns.  Both at the time unaware that Floyd had been
hit in the small of the back with a few pellets of shot. (confirmed in autopsy report)  Once the two men fired
one barrel each at Floyd, Floyd turned and fired the Thompson at the 2 men wounding Grover Potts in the
shoulder
Floyd continued to run on over the hill beyond the house and out of sight leaving the Thompson sub
machine gun 3 houses up over the bank from the brick yard in the bushes  as it was too heavy to carry
any further.

This would be the last time Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd would escape running.  He would remain on the run
for 2 more days during a massive man hunt

From his vantage point at Silver Switch, Joe Fryman who had missed meeting Sheriff Fultz witnessed the
entire event and verified the story in his statement to the Corner E.R. Sturgis during his inquiry.  Although
he was out of hearing range he had witnessed the entire event that morning from a safe distance.

Sheriff Fultz handcuffed Adam and took him to the city jail at Wellsville on that Saturday, Oct 20, 1934.  He
had told them that his name was Eddy Zamboni, which Zamboni was his mother's maiden name, not
wanting them to know who he was, and to get the attention of his family should they hear the name.  When
asked by Sheriff Fultz about the man he was with, Adam told him that the man's name was Joe Warren
from Toledo, Ohio.  According to a statement by  Sheriff Fultz he had recognized Floyd's picture from a
book published by the William.J. Burns International Detective Agency within 2 hours that day after
arresting Adam.  During that day Adam Richetti was interrogated by the local law officers without divulging
any information.  Sheriff Fultz placed extra armed guards around the jail house fearing the worst.
The Capture of
Adam Ricchetti
and Escape of
Charles "Pretty Boy"
Floyd
Wellsville Capture Site
Adam and Sheriff Fultz,
Wellsville, OH
Sheriff Fultz, Adam, Mayor Doherty of Wellsville.
Deputy Erin
Please email me with
your comments or
questions:
fsustik@hotmail.com
Adam Oct 21st 1935 Wellsville
Eventually Adam was taken from the Lisbon, Ohio jail  to Chicago by three Cleveland deputy United States
Marshals, Deputy Marshal A. T. McGown, John Luses and Dwight Williams.

Plans to fly Adam from Chicago airport were abandoned due to inclement weather.  Marshals spirited him
by car to the train station for his trip to Kansas City. On Nov 4th aboard the Burlington Road's "American
Royal" to Kansas Adam will be named as one of the gunmen in the Union Station Massacre.  Adam was
manacled and under vigiland guard and was held in a rear coach compartment 15 minutes before the train
left the station at 7:50am.