CHARGED WITH MURDER

Auckland Star, Volume XLVI, Issue 230, 27 September 1915, Page 7

CHARGED WITH MURDER

jHE RAMARAMA SENSATION.

I VIDOW OF VICTIM ARRESTED !

EBOl'tiHT IT IX AUCKLAND. £?DR£>' ANnK " F " K EIGHT DAYS. . -Amelia Perry." In re.-ponve to the jnt cell at the Police Court tnjs morn jj, i young woman walked briskly up („ the prisoner* box .md listened with «ut ai>P» rent ronei , ™ to thp following (inrgc:—"Amelia Perry. you are, jjygtd that on September 25, m R»nmyou murdered John Thomas j£nj> Chief Detective McMaijon.j applied for v remand of eight j iijt, to which counsel for accused (Mr.' fcjkPrendergasti offered no objection jk presiding Justices—Mess re. H. Cad tst, C. Cwnpbell, and A. Buckley. J.P.s, granted the remand, and the promptly left the Court to be \4ttn back to the police celle. Owing to ti« public holiday the Court had as-ffmble-1 * n !lo,lr earlier than unual. and were few present besides the ofß tab. THE AC(I"SED< a WOMAN. Ittired in a winter coat of navy jtoe, with a snuUl blue hat. relieved by j jjid trimmings, and wearing a red \ scarf, the accused presented an j upearince which was neater than that tf the average Police Court habitue, jlfcoilt sft 4in in height, with colourless (eplexion. then' »;is nothing in her fcotanour to tragt'dy apart fniß a slightly startled roving o f the qti. Tiioee who have been investigatto the case state that her bearing has] b#a almoit free from concern since, {sturdily niornini.'. The exception was! '■ t period of about five minutes, follow-| cj tie intimation of arrest at herj lie yesterday afternoon. She then {eufnUy disclaimed responsibility for, it's crime. Her age ia Ji". whereas that of ier husband was 45. They were mar-! jjtd in Auckland fourteen years a?o,; ipd * pitiful feature of the case i« that I jjjj young children are thus suddenly! (jt kirift. The two youngest have, this ■ Beriinjt been taken by the official* of j tit Door °t Hope, and arrnngenicnts for! tit care of the other* in the meantime, lit being made by the police. EVIDENCE OF THE GIN. The bedroom window was raUeU about j tbret inches, but the police learned that it #se left like that evry night. A gun; Tjici was found in a store room in the i bt;k part of the houee was examined , ooSaturday afternoon by an expert, w-ho opressM tlie opinion that one barrel fed been recently used. Mrs. Perry; it»t«d that tin* weapon {usually kept■ h the ttore room) had not been usedj SJ« Thursday, when her husband was , cat ihooting rabbit*. It is understood tUt it was suppose<l to have then fired tie last two cartridge*. Wheu Ukeir mrgt of bTt'ne po!i<« there was no ortridge case in tiie gun. FIRED AT CLOSE RANGE. ,The«9vere nature of the injuries sugifted that the gun had been fired at 3ery dose range. Blue powder marks ■•ere observed where the charge entered the forehead near the left temple. From tie condition of the boards over the bead of the bed it was surmised that; de victim wa» probably at the time in t Jalf sitting pasture, or at least that fc;j head was higher than when the; totor and police arrived. There seems to:be little doubt that death muat have kta almost, if not quite instantaneous. TSequery naturally arose as to whether iif charge from the «hot fc niu. had it Sea flred through the window, would ■■ jet tare spread and aUo injured otner easpant* of the bed. It » umlTetood| tbi'. the garments worn by tbe accused! «ere neither perforated nor bloodttwti, TAKEN FROM HOME. When arrested at the house yesterday, afternoon on tbe formal charge of niur-. to, Mrs. Perry displayed her first sign. ef dirtress, hut during the outburst she renaintd obilurate in tbe assertion that it* "did not do if A motor car was inwn up at the back door, and the MCB»ed was informed that she might kriag her two youngest children to •lackland. After attirina herself for lit journey phe quietly entered the rar. Hi w»s telf-poeaeseed throughout. The party joined the suburban train »t hpakura. reaching the city at about . o'clock, and thr arcu»rd *!ept soundly in-the police cells during the wgHt. BrteeUTe-Sergeant Holli», who. w «i Qief-Detective McMahon, accompanied fte accu»ed to Auckland, returned »> Bamarama today for the purpose ol inking (or burial and for the further are of the remaining children by relatira who live in the dUtrict. POST-MORTEM EXAMINATION. Tb« .ii»in fact.-, the murder mystery fere Hated :n SaturJat D.ght'a "Mar. At that stage Uiiief Detective McMahon l«DttectiTe-»irgeant Hollis were interviewing the widow, having by that time oiuincd additiunal information ac a re ' idt of the postmortem exaawoation by Df. Mihoin and tie examination of the pn by Lolonel \V. H. Hazard. Tlirough«ut Uio ua>- Mil*. IVrrj and the elder, culdren had bi-.- n go.ha about their lirayird dutie* a- thuiigh nothing un■! tonaru had oetiirnJ. th.- ir.->ther A dhwr-, fag to her i,tan.-:ii*-iit l-iit the gun which. eated (ieith tne bediboib window. THi: CHAMKEB OF MYSTERY. Thi»room via ,n the front part of the) house, and. iUe the other*, it wan famished with:the !«ireness of a •bint). Jast us i.»- exterior had re-, *i»ed only on,! cat of paint/ so tbe interior had jieither been lined norj P»?tied. It !- "-merely a room Bft | *We anil ten |eet Ion?" A double bed. lie p»rallel with the window, and there] >• j«t room liv pass between. Cn the ki»,ic of the; bed js a rough cot. made! °"t of caeinir »hn-li takes up the space irtfetn the 1..-.I an-l the *all. The de**aied slept ji'iir.rt the window —be j »ould be about h,.\ f.'t in> •""' !iifl *ife oeenpied the middle of the bed. ■*hUe between her ami the yot loccupied, Vtt* secunj youngest ciiild) nM the t»O-muntln-<jlil' baby. | ELDH-1 UtiVS STIIRY. .•*• previou«3j »uN. the family reared it aboulj Il.;;u \>.m on FriJay, the lather and the eU.vt girl having returncil from at 10.30. The eld*»t child la boy .ig. 1 14 yeors and two *ontbs) informed the that he wae ''»*akeried by a n-.-<■. which he thought •t first nae eaueed by v hoard folHiig from his bed The children slept OD *ou«lily »ad<. otreu-here. After feelPi round for a while he became fully

awake, and, when looking through a cracV m the wall he thought he amelt burning powder. He went to the front bedroom, and lighting the lamp, aeked what was the matter with his father. Hμ mother said that someone had blown the top o! h* head off, upon hearing which the boy commenced to cry. His mother told him to go for a neighbour, and as be waa leaving called out to wait while ehe pre pared a bottle for the baby. After a while the mother followed, and the neighbour undertook to have a doctor called by telephone.