Thomas inquiry proves lengthy

Press, 31 March 1979, Page 4

Thomas inquiry proves lengthy

PA Wellington The Arthur Allan Thomas inquiry is still months away from completion. An Auckland lawyer (Mr R. Adams-Smith, Q C.) has been working on the inquiry since last October. He said he was still completing his report for the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon). Mr Adams-Smith was authorised to investigate assertions made in a book by a British author, David Yallop, on the Crewe murder case of 1970. The nine-year lapse since the murders made contacting key witnesses very difficult, said Mr Adams-Smith. “It is not easy to get information and it cannot be hurried. The public will have to be patient,” he said.

Mr Adams-Smith has been working almost continuously on the inquiry since last year, but was delayed because he was

unable to find key persons. With assistance from the Prime Minister’s Department, further details became available recently. “I cannot say how long the report will take. It depends on the speed with which the information comes in,” said Mr Adams-Smith. The investigation would continue until “we have exhausted what we can get. Whether we can get the exact truth is another matter, which has been a fault in this case for the last nine years.”

On its completion, the report will be forwarded to Mr Muldoon, who wifi decide what to do and whether to make it public. The inquiry will investigate claims in Yallop’s book as to the identity of the woman who allegedly fed the Crewe child after the parents were shot in June, 1970. The exact date of the killings will also be investigated.