Police Recover Blenheim Booty; Two Men Charged

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31660, 22 April 1968, Page 1

Police Recover Blenheim Booty; Two Men Charged

Police said yesterday that the most difficult aspect of New Zealand’s biggest robbery was the recovery of the stolen money from the head of lonely Mahau Sound.

Most of the $51,000 stolen from the Blenheim Post Office Savings Bank last weekend was recovered this week-end. Two Blenheim men appeared in Court on Saturday. To recover tbe money, detectives travelled about 60 miles by car and made a gruelling tramp through to the isolated spot where tbe money was buried. “We had quite a job getting to it," a police spokesman said yesterday. “You never saw such a place—through dense bush, up mountains and through swamps.” The money was buried 2ft

deep and although it was in plastic and canvas bags it was soaking wet. Because the money was very heavy, the detectives and two men with them took turns to carry it out. For a while the party became lost on the way back. Back at Blenheim, the detectives found that about $6OOO in notes was still missing. Men Charged Raymond Harry Hancock, a 29-year-old farm worker, of 4 David Street, Blenheim, and Geoffrey Blanchard Sergent, a 23-year-old chainman, of 11 Ward Street, Blenheim, were remanded in the Blenheim Court on Saturday to appear before the Magistrate at Nelson on Friday. They were charged with having broken into the Blen-

helm Chief Post Office on April 14 with intent to commit a crime. Mr R. A. J. Marston, Justice of the Peace, was on the bench. The men were not represented. No plea was taken. Mr Marston said the two men were to be remanded in custody. The investigation was led by Detective Sergeant A. W. Hedwig, assisted by Detective Sergeant J. A. Dawson, of Christchurch, Detective Con-

stable T. J. Gorman, Detective E. L. McLachlan, of Blenheim, Constables L. B. Thompson, J. Claridge, T. Lyttle, and T. Myles.