DAYLIGHT HOLD-UP.

Auckland Star, Volume LII, Issue 303, 21 December 1921, Page 4

DAYLIGHT HOLD-UP.

IN A BUST STREET. MARAMA'S PURSER ROBBED. \ (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) [ " WELLINGTON", this day. The Mararaa, which arrived at Well- ( ington from San Francisco yesterday, j brought news of a daring robbery of 5000 , dollars from the ship's purser, Mr. Leighton, while lip was talcing money ' from the bank to pay the crew. It ap- ' pears that Mr. Leighton went to the j bank, placed the money in a brief bag, and then stepped into a taxi, and was I taken down Sansome Street towards the ; ship. It was about 11 in the morning, ' and 'Sansome Street, which i 3 a street. ' containing large warehouses niid build--1 ings witti offices, was fairly busy with pedestrian and vehicular traffic. A motor car which was running a little in , front of Mr. Leighton's taxi suddenly ; swerved and forced his motor against ' the kerb, causing the driver to stop. Throe men leapt oat of the other car," while one of the men. who wore goggles, ' held up the taxi driver with a revolver. The desperado removed the key, tlius preventing the taxi being driven. In the' \ meanwhile the other two men pushed revolvers ageinst the body of Mr > Leighton, on learning that he was im--1 armed, enatched the bag containing the money, and hurrying to their own car ■ drove quickly away before the spectators ■ realised what had happened. Mr. Leigh ton immediately proceeded to 'the t"nion Company's offices and reported the occurrence without delay. The police ' were notified and a large posse of detectives and uniformed men were soon in search. The bandits' car was found abandoned some distance away from the scene of the hold-up. The car had been stolen by the criminals. It is believed that they intended to rob the purser of the Sonoma, who drew 17,000 dollars from the bank while the Marama's purser was there. The ' Sonoma's purser, however, took a different route to the wharf. No trace of the thieves of the i monuy has since been reported.