St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 3

lomsmoeday Pec. 22, 1986 ST. LOUIS POST-PIS PATCH Holiday Revelers Sing, Sip Hot Chocolate Burglary Dispute Called Motive For Hoodlum's Murder ft" 1 SX -M ft 4 fai.MII HUM UlilUfll I I TilWIII lllllll that a few weeks before Owens was killed, Owens threatened to kill one of the brothers. Then, on Christmas Eve in 1983, Politte told Stoneking, a friend of Owens met Owens and lured him to the friend's house near St. Charles.

Owens had been delivering Christmas flowers. Politte said that while Owens was in the bathroom, one of the brothers came up behind him and fired a shot into the back of the head. As the brother did so, Owens put his right arm behind his head. The killer fired another shot, which struck Owens in the hand, Politte told Stoneking. The killers then put Owens in the trunk of his car and drove it to the airport parking garage.

One of the brothers sat in the back seat, and when he got out of the car, his fur hat was knocked off. But the man slammed the door shut, automatically locking it. The keys and the hat were locked inside. A short time later, the house where Owens was said to have been killed burned down. Arson was suspected.

Stoneking said Politte had told him that Owens' friend had burned the house to destroy traces of Owens' blood. Authorities said they had corroborated much of Politte's story. They said that the hat had been recovered in the car and that Owens had been shot in the hand. But sources said investigators had been unable to place any of the brothers at the scene of the murder. Stoneking said Politte had told him that some discussion had arisen in the underworld about killing the brothers.

But eventually, underworld figures decided not to kill the brothers because "it was a personal matter." "But I'm not going to forget about it," Stoneking said Politte had told him. Owens, who lived in St. Peters, and another member of Berne's outfit killed Louis Shoulders in 1972 in a dispute over burglary loot, according to other information provided by Stoneking to the FBI. Shoulders was killed when a bomb exploded in his car near Branson, Mo. Stoneking said he had been told by Berne that Owens and the late William "Shotgun" Sanders had killed Shoulders because he had withheld $30,000 from them as their share of loot from a burglary.

wes PazPost-Dispatcn 5-year-old's mother, Rose, also held a thousands joined the first "Sing program. Thousands Gather At Union Station By Deborah Peterson Of the Post-Dispatch Staff The romance and magic of Christmas carols were not lost on the thousands of holiday revelers who sang, snuggled and sipped hot chocolate Sunday evening in front of Union Station. As participants swayed to the strains of "Jingle Bell Rock" and clapped to the tune of "Jingle Bells," men throughout the crowd put their arms around their wives, and women leaned over to give their boyfriends kisses. "We're having a great time," said Vicki Eckert of Kirkwood, who was there with her boyfriend, Dennis Kempf of the Central West End. "It just gets you in the holiday spirit to be here, with someone you care about." Anne Carter of University City gave her boyfriend, Eric Sandberg of Chesterfield, a peck on the cheek, but said the two of them were cuddled together for a practical reason.

"We're freezing," she said with a laugh as she tugged at Sandberg's arm. "But it is pretty romantic." Sandberg looked at her with a smile and said: "It's very romantic." The crowd gathered in front of the station for an hour of caroling sponsored by Union Station and the St. Louis Christmas Carols Association. The event was called the "first-ever Sing Out St. Louis." The crowd heard a musical overture by the Compton Heights Band and carols sung by the Grace Church Choir, the Anheuser-Busch Choir, the An-tioch Baptist Church Gospel Choir and the Lester Family.

Candles were passed out to people who gathered in front of the Milles Fountain, across the street from Union Station. The choir groups decked in holiday attire such as Santa Claus hats and white robes with red trim performed on a stage set up in front of Union Station. The flickering glow of the thousands of candles showed beaming faces above them. Group Wants By Charlene Prost Of the Post-Dispatch Staff A group that wants to renovate two old stone mansions in Oak Knoll Park in Clayton and convert them into an art museum featuring works by a single artist has obtained an option to lease the buildings from Clayton, officials say. Lee Evett, Clayton's city manager, said the group would pay the municipality $1 a year for the use of the mansions.

The group is headed by By Ronald J. Lawrence Of the Post-Dispatch Staff 1986, St. Louis Post-Dispatch Norman "Bosco" Owens, a high-ranking hoodlum in the St. Louis area, apparently was lured to his death three years ago by a close friend because of a dispute over disposal of stolen jewelry, sources have told the Post-Dispatch. Owens, 52, had been shot and killed by one of three brothers who are felons and who operate a burglary ring, the sources said.

Owens had threatened to kill one of the brothers because he cheated Owens out of a large sum of money, the sources said. Underworld figures considered killing the brothers to avenge Owens' murder but decided it had been a personal matter and backed off, the sources said. The information on the motive for Owens' murder was provided by Jesse Stoneking, a former lieutenant of Metro East rackets boss Arthur Berne. At the time of the murder, Stoneking was an undercover informer for the FBI. The information was supplied recently to local authorities.

Stoneking got the information in 1984 from William Politte, who had been a close associate of Owens. Politte, now serving a federal prison sentence, and Owens were members of Berne's crime outfit. Owens was described by authorities as one of the best safecrackers in the nation. Stoneking is in hiding. He recently gave the Post-Dispatch an interview in which he recounted a conversation with Politte several months after Owens' murder.

Stoneking said he had recorded the conversation for the FBI. The murder occurred several months after Stoneking became an informer. Owens' frozen body was found Dec. 26, 1983, in the trunk of his car in the parking garage at Lambert Field. He had been shot in the back of the head.

He had been missing for several days. At first, authorities believed that Owens had been killed in a power struggle within Operating Engineers Local 513. Owens, a felon, had been appointed a shop steward at a yearly salary of $37,000 a short time before he was killed. Politte had considerable influence in the union. Stoneking said Politte had told him the planetarium in Forest Park for part of its programs and exhibits.

The center has acquired the old Falstaff Building at 5050 Oakland Avenue and plans to renovate it as the second part of the expansion. Science Center officials said last week that the Oak Knoll Park mansion that has been used as the natural history museum would be closed to the public for good on Dec. 31. The other mansion, housing the science museum, was closed to the public at 'Terms may change without notice APPRAISALS Mary Colleen Walsh's eyes light of a candle as she joins caroling Sunday in front of "This is really great," Richard Lammers of O'Fallon, said as he hummed along with "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen." "We'll be back next year," Lammers said. "We especially like the old traditional songs.

It's good for everybody to be able to sing together." Not only was the event free, but the Omni International Hotel at Union Station provided more than 2,000 cups of hot chocolate for the crowd. That gesture pleased some of the carolers as much as the sing-along. "I enjoyed the cocoa," said Mike Burke of Kirkwood, when asked how he had liked the caroling. Young people in love weren't the only ones in the crowd. Grandparents and children, families and sin here." With six children and five grandchildren, the Ebbesmeyers said they were looking forward to a crowded and fun-filled Christmas at their house.

"I'm going to start cooking tomorrow," Irene Ebbesmeyer said. "I already baked cookies today snickerdoodles." The program was capped off by a fireworks display in the shape of a giant birthday cake. It commemorated the 75th anniversary of the Christmas Carols Association, founded by William Danforth, the grandfather of Sen. John C. Danforth, and Dr.

William H. Danforth, the chancellor of Washington University. William H. Danforth is the president of the Carols Association. To Turn Oak Knoll Park Mansions Into Museum For lawyer Jacob Reby.

The group would renovate the mansions and be responsible for their upkeep. Evett declined to identify the artist involved, but he said "this would be a world-class artist." "This would also be the first museum in this country we know of operated by a not-for-profit organization that would exhibit the works of one artist," he said. Evett said the group wanted to gleam by the the Christmas Union Station. gle people were there. All seemed united by their desire to let the carols put them in the holiday mood.

"I think this is terrific. It really does help to get you in the spirit of things," said Anne Green of Caho-kia, who was there with her husband and son, Matt, 12. The music and thousands of tiny white lights strung through the trees around the fountain and winding along the balconies and ledges of Union Station evoked memories for some of the carolers. "I remember years ago when the carolers used to go through Florissant, but they don't do that anymore," Irene Ebbesmeyer of Flo-1-ssant said as she tucked her beneath her husband's arms to try to keep warm. "It's so pretty the Station I once saw an old love off raise some of the $3 million it would like to have to renovate the mansions before it moves forward with the project and makes other details public.

Although Reby refused Sunday to identify the artist, he confirmed that the group had obtained an option to lease both mansions. He also said he expected to be able to discuss the project more openly in several months. The two mansions and part of the surrounding 21-acre estate have been Gary BohnPost-Dispatch Ballot Spot the petitions and turn it over to their attorneys to decide." Lewis was unavailable for comment. Merritts has been treated unfairly, Watkins said "Carl Officer and Clyde Jordan don't want Mr. Merritts to file," Watkins said.

"And I don't blame them because he can beat them both." Merritts, a former president of the East St. Louis School Board, spent five years in prison in the 1970s after being convicted of conspiring to murder Jordan. Jordan is the East St. Louis Township supervisor, chairman of the city's Democratic organization and publisher of the East St. Louis Monitor, the only newspaper published in East St.

Louis. The candle as Out St. Louis" t- 'Al. mm Ki rt Pdl i I it i id If 4 I artMi fil home for the old Museum of Science and Natural History since shortly after the city acquired the property in 1959. The museum, now part of the St.

Louis Science Center, has been leasing the mansions from Clayton. The Science Center which is a merger of the old science and natural history museum and the McDonnell Planetarium in Forest Park has continued to use the mansions as it works on an expansion plan. So far, the center has renovated One-Car Crash Kills Belleville Woman A woman from Belleville was fatally injured about 12:30 a.m. Sunday in a one-car accident on Illinois Route 159 near the Illinois Route 15 exit in Belleville. Joe Ann Frazier, 36, of 420 East McKinley Street, was pronounced dead at the scene by Ace Heart, deputy coroner for St.

Clair County. Police said Frazier had been east-bound on Route 15 and left at the Route 159 exit. She then drove across 159 into a ditch, police said. She was thrown from the car, which then overturned on top of her. Meanwhile, a man from Wood River was fatally injured about midnight Saturday when the motorcycle he was driving struck an automobile on Illinois Route 104 about one-half mile west of Jacksonville, 111., in Morgan County.

James Watson, 34, of 117 South Central Avenue, died at 12:28 a.m. at Passavant Hospital in Jacksonville, which is about 70 miles north of St. Louis. Lotteries MISSOURI Saturday's Lotto game Winning numbers 3-5-13-26-28-37 First Prize winners: Players matching six numbers 0 1 million jackpot; rolls over to $1.3 million) Second Prize winners: Five numbers matched 57 (Each will get $498.00) Third Prize winners: Four numbers matched 2,255 (Each will get $35.00) One Artist the end of 1984. Bob Briggs, a spokesman for the science center, said staff members would soon begin preparing for the task of moving the center's collection of artifacts to another location.

The collection will be stored until the Falstaff building is renovated, a project that is expected to take several years. "We have quite an extensive collection, so this move is not going to happen overnight," he said. 1 WITHIN 10 DAYS Granite 451-1000 Edw.Coll. 288-9898 COMPANY JS II Executive Woods Court Belleville. Illinois "Bcied on 60,000 sale prke with a loan of 57,500.

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The fox (left) chewed off a leg to escape the trap, protesters said. E. St. Louisan Will Ask Court For 7710 Carondelet Clayton. Missouri GINNIE HIGH YIELD SAFETY ILLINOIS Daily game Sunday's winning number 022 Pick-Four game Sunday's winning number 8258 Saturday's Lotto game Winning numbers 1-2-9-15-32-39 Delmar Mortgage Company ia a Certfied GNMA Issuer and ia pleased to offer these investments directly to the public, bypassing the middleman.

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Jordan as the two leading candidates in the primary. The other two candidates are businessman Harold Franklin and 7th Ward Alderman Roosevelt Malone. Merritts had arrived at the election board's office around the time of the 5 p.m. deadline on Dec. 15 to file petitions.

James Lewis, chairman of the board, offered to accept the petitions, but Merritts refused to turn them in, saying he would take the matter to court. Merritts then turned in the petitions the next morning. Watkins said Saturday that Merritts had arrived before the deadline of 5 p.m. but had been locked out of the office until a few minutes after 5 p.m. "I'm confident he will be placed on the ballot," Watkins said.

"We were there before 5, and we were locked out. And they never said we could file. They only said they would take By Safir Ahmed Of the Post-Dispatch Staff An attorney for Charles Merritts Sr. said he would seek a court order today to force the East St. Louis Election Board to place Merritts on the ballot for the Democratic primary for mayor on Feb.

24. The Election Board ruled Friday that Merritts, formerly a top political figure in the city, had filed too late to be included on the ballot. Dennis Watkins, attorney for Merritts, said he would ask the St. Clair County Circuit Court to order the election board to put Merritts on the ballot. Watkins said he also would seek an injunction to prevent the printing of any ballots without Merritts' name on them.

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