The Crime of the Century

By Merel M.

On the evening of March 1, 1932, 20-month-old Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr., was taken from his crib upstairs. No one knows how the kidnapper was able to get around without being heard by the child's parents.

A ten-week nation-wide search was undertaken. Ransom negotiations were also conducted. These resulted in the payment on April 2 of $50,000 in cash, part of which was made in soon-to-be withdrawn Gold certificates, in exchange for information. The information was false.

The search finally ended on May 12 when the remains of an infant were discovered by a truck driver close to the Lindbergh’s home. The child's body was soon identified as Charles himself, 2 miles from the family home in East Amwell, New Jersey.

A month later, the "Lindbergh Lawz" was started. This law stated that it would be a federal offense if a child was kidnapped and taken across state borders, unless the child had proper documents, or if mail was used to transport ransom notes across state lines.

Tracing of many Gold certificates passed in the New York City area over the next year eventually led police to 34-year old German immigrant carpenter, Bruno Richard Hauptmann. He was arrested near his home in The Bronx, New York, on September 19, 1934. A stash of $13,760 was found in his home: it was the ransom money. Six weeks later, he was convicted on all counts when, following just eleven hours of deliberation, he was immediately sentenced to death.

The Lindbergh family learned to get over their loss, but were tired of the never ending spot light on the family, so they moved to England.

No one knows whether the crook did it for the money or the kill. No one knows why Charles’s parents didn’t wake up to rescue their little boy. What we do know is that this crime was horrible, but also made it just a little safer for every child out there.

Information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Lindbergh#.22The_Crime_of_the_Century.22