BETTING MONEY LOST.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 208, 2 September 1932, Page 8

BETTING MONEY LOST.

SHOPKEEPER'S STORY. INQUIRY INTO FIRE. \ " SUSPICIOUS," SAYS MAGISTRATE. • i ■ .1 v., •£: • (By Telegraph.—Special to >"Star."} GISBORNE, this day. Alleged betting losses as the result of Sunny Sky's victory at Auckland last June were a prominent feature in statements made in the Magistrate's Court yesterday, during an inquiry into the. circumstances surrounding a fire in the fruiterer's shop of Samuel James Bardwell on the night of June 8. Bardwell was examined at length cdhcerning the reported loee of £70 from his safe, and also concerning the origin of the fire. In evidence he said that he locked the stop at 9.30 p.m. and returned for his bicycle after spending half an hour -or so at a club. When he was summoned after the fire he found that it had broken out behind the counter in a carpet runner, which was bundled in a heap, and practically destroyed. The stock and fittings were insured for £500. Questioned by Detective' McLeod, Bardwell admitted that , he had a number of debts at the time. Those enumerated totalled approximately £100. In addition he owed over £100 in respect of borough rates. He had a fire in a shop he previously occupied, this also having been discovered about the same time, and also behind the counter. Detective McLeod: Was the £70 in the safe your takings from the shop?— No. What was it? —The proceeds of betting. There were races in Auckland that day ? —Yes. Paid a Good Dividend. Further questioned, witness admitted that Sunny Sky won that day and paid a good dividend. The money in the safe was the proceeds of several days' betting. At the time of the fire he was not in a good financial position, but that was nothing unusual in these

days. The safe was in good order, and gave no sign of being tampered with. The doors of the shop were also secure. Detective McLeod: How do yon account for the safe having- been opened ? —Well, I have since thought I may have forgotten to lock it. You suggest that entrance had been gained by someone who found the safe unlocked ?—l' don't suggest anything. Are-you sure you put the money in the safe? —Positive. I suggest the story of your loss is due to your betting transactions? —Not at all. To put it plainer, I suggest the story was the result of the loss of the bet over Sunny Sky at Auckland?—lt was not. When the detective proceeded to ask whether the witness had asked for time to pay a man who wagered on Sunny Sky, his counsel objected, and the examination was dropped. Safe Found Unlocked. In reply to his counsel, witness said he had been in business in Gisborne for eleven years, and always paid his way. He was not being pressed by creditors at the time of the lire. Further evidence included that of the fire superintendent, who said he found the windows and doors of the shop securely fastened and the safe unlocked. In an open verdict the coroner, Mr. P. H. Harper, S.M., commented that there were suspicious circumstances, but on the other hand if the occupier of' the shop had intended to burn the premises he probably would have shown more intelligence in selecting the point of the outbreak.