THE LAKE COLERIDGE BURGLARY.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 57, 14 April 1914, Page 8

THE LAKE COLERIDGE BURGLARY.

SOME FURTHER DETAILS. " The burglary at Lake Coleridge seems not to have been quite so simple a matter as it appeared at first. The men living in the adjoining whares were awakened at about 4 o'clock on Saturday morning, and it was found that the post office, a whare of slabs much like the rest of the camp buildings, was shattered. The roof' was lifted almost entirely off, and on investigation the safe was discovered to be blown to pieces. Evidently the persons who used the explosive were not experts or did not care as to the amount of attention they attracted. The day of the burglary was immediately after pay-day, when many of the men would be sending money to their wives and families, and it is evident that those who committed the crime were aware that there was an unusual amount of money in the place. The total amount stolen is estimated ac some £270. Though the building was badly damaged and the safe shattered, there was no sign of the thieves being injured, so it seems that they must have made a fortunate escape. Papers and "documents were scattered in all directions, but there was no sign of the missing cash-box. It was fortunate that at the time of the explosion the man who took charge of the ofiiee, and his wife, were away from home.