BURGLARY IN THE CITY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 70, 16 December 1907, Page 8

BURGLARY IN THE CITY.

STATIONER'S SHOP BROKEN INTO,

• A £300 HAUL/ The temporary"premise's of Messrs. Whit combe and .Tombs,' booksellers and station* ers, Lambton Quay, were entered by burglars on Friday niglit or early Saturday niorning,■ and stock valued'at ahout £30P was. removed. Mr. Louis Whitconibe.was on. the premises until 10.3U on Friday night, and left'everything secure before leaving'for home.. On opening up.the premises abon eight o'clock on Saturday morning it wa-s-ai onco.-iioticeable that strangers had been on the premises during-the night, and on a search' being inncle it was found that the shop had \ been'thoroughly:ransacked. It is surniiseq that-the fact thatthe firm was : holdirig; t removal sale led the burglars to believe thai they would , find money' on the premises.; h. this, they were disappointed, for. although about , £100 was in the shop on.the , Fridaj it had, according to custom, been removed to safer quarters-before the ehop was locked up. Several empty, cash :boxes were foun4 : on, the. f100r.,. :-. - : :,.,'.' .''■■ . ...- .■-.•'._• Failing ,to find money, the burglars. satisfieri .themselves .with money's worthy apt, spared no pains in theselection'of the booty. The whole-stock appears Jo have : been gonf. "through,, and . a , , careful, selection made jx! the handiest .and most- valuable goods,'.'.'-in* eluding- gold and silver-mounted ware, which'' could bc : packed away into a.sfdall space.r.A' number of- boxes, of goods which iwere recently landed from England, and> which had : hot been opened by the firm, were removed from the, building, and- taken oh to "the hill, at the.back of the shop,-where they were broken open amongst the-long grass.' ,-...;..:. •. An entrance was effected through a-sky- , light in the roof. The burglars apparently got on to the rpnf, of the back of the building,from Wellington Terrace, aiid made their way .to the v raised skylight. • An' opening was made in this, and the robbers then made a knotted rop& fast and climbed down'the rope into the building. ■;. •• , ' ' ]-■'■:'' /The stolen articles consist chiefly..of foun- ■ tain pens, gold nfjs, and ladies', leather bags. One person could easily have carried off the lot. It is, however, thought probahle .that more'than' one took part in tho. theft.. Apparently the offence, was not committed: by an experienced cracksman. Some considerable time has elapsed since business premises' in the city were entered'in a similar manner.

It' is evident that the burglary at Whifccombe and'.Tomb's establishment was the work, of experienced burglars. Chubb's safes and strongroom • doors are thief-resisting. Large stocks of burglar-resisting safes'and strongroom doors are held in Wellington,, Uhristchurchj Auckland,' and Dunedin by Gaulter, Dykes and Company, the 'New Zealand managers of Chubb's Sa.fe and Lock. Company, London. : \ - >Advt:'