John Kelson was arrested on Freeport's waterfront, along with Charles Bassa, on the night of April 20, 1923. The men were charged with transporting liquor. A rowboat containing 22 cases of Scotch whiskey was seized by authorities.
Source:
"Miss Motorboats, But Get Rowboat and Scotch Whisky." The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. April 21, 1923, 7. Accessed December 16, 2017. https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/57150716/?terms=%22freeport%2Braid%22~10.
"Trap For Rumrunners." The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. December 22, 1922, 10. Accessed December 16, 2017. https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/60028224/?terms=%22james%2Br.%2Bkerrigan%22.
Researched by Regina G. Feeney, December 16, 2017.
James R. Kerrigan was a chief intelligence officer with the Federal Prohibition Enforcement Department and worked on Long Island, specifically in the Freeport area with Frank J. Hale. Kerrigan left the Prohibition service in 1923 and reportedly began the Kerrigan Investigating Service. He later served as a Federal narcotics agent. In this role, he is credited with a seizure of $2 million worth of narcotics as it was being loaded onto the Twentieth Century Limited in Grand Central Station.
Tragically, Kerrigan died as the result of an eight-foot fall during a September 28, 1928 raid on an New Jersey opium den. Complaining of frequent abdominal pain, Kerrigan underwent surgery in December of 1928 and died two weeks later at the age of 41.
Source:
"Another Dry Chief Quits Service Here." The New York Times. March 19, 1923, 7.
"Federal Agent Dies. A Drug War Martyr." The New York Times. December 28, 1928, 11.
"Liquor Planes Take 75 Cases Each Trip." The New York Herald. December 13, 1922, 3. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045774/1922-12-13/ed-1/seq-3/.
Researched by Regina G. Feeney, December 13, 2017.
Krazy Kat II was a 60 foot motor boat that was captured by the Coast Guard after it ran aground in Jones Inlet near Freeport in April 1922. It was found to have whiskey valued at $10,000 onboard. Arrested were Theodore Synett of the Hotel McAlpin; Joseph Lazaro, 693 Fourth Avenue, Brooklyn; and John Dizick of 709 First Avenue, Brooklyn.
Source:
"Sixty in Peril Over Bootleg Volcano." The New York Times. April 28, 1922, 19. Accessed September 17, 2018. www.newspapers.com.
Researched by Regina G. Feeney, September 17, 2018.