MISSING SAFE

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 70, 15 December 1928, Page 11

MISSING SAFE

ALLEGED BREAKING AND ENTERING UNUSUAL EVIDENCE FOR PROSECUTION ACCUSED COMMITTED FOR TRIAL Dominion Special Service. Palmerston North, December 14. Fingerprint evidence formed the foundation of a case in the Magistrate s Uourt here to-day in which James Moretun McGill, alias Fat McGill, alias John McGill, was charged with breaking and entering a tobacconist's shop, occupied by Janies Clarke Christie, in Rangitikei Street, and with stealing a safe containing £44, also cheques to the value of £23. Accused was described as a labourer and canvasser, and his place of residence was given as Dannevirke. He was committed to the Supreme Court for Messrs. 11. Edwards, and 11. J. Canton, J.l’.'s, were on the Bench. Mr. C. A. Loughnan appeared for accused. The case lasted about five hours. Senior-Detective T. Quirk, who conducted the prosecution, briefly outlined the case. Between 10 p.m. on December 1 and 7.30 a.m. on December 3 the shop had been forcibly entered. Fingerprints were found on a piece of tin and also on wood from a door leading into the ladies saloon. No further trace of the safe had been found. Accused had been interviewed at Dannevirke by Detective Barling and himself, when accused said he had not been near Christie’s shop for days. He further said he had not been in Palmerston North since Monday. The marks on the door showed evidence of a pair of pliers, a motor-car tire lever or a similar instrument. Some pliers and a tire lever had been found in McGills possession. They were produced. Describing how he found the shop, James Clarke Christie said he left all securely locked at ten o’clock on Saturday, December 1. About 7.30 on Monday morning. on opening the shop, he saw the till had been ransacked, and £o had been taken from it. A small safe, about 20 bv 15 inches, was missing from behind the counter, and had in it £24 in cheques and about £67 in money. Witness said that a piece of wood produced had been taken by the police from the ladies saloon <l °H. E. Bergensen, locksmith, said he had taken the locks off the doors to hand to the police. When a pair of pliers were examined by him, he said the front teeth were finer than the back teeth. He later said the marks at the back of the locks were larger than the marks at the front. The pliers, or a similar pair, had caught on the band, with the coarse teeth, and had slipped and caught on the frown, with the smaller teeth. He saw indications of the brass of which the locks were made, between the teeth. Constable Goodwin said that about 130 am. on the Sunday morning, when on duty, he saw a car parked in King Street, facing Rangitikei Street. No parking lights were on it. He examined the numbers of the car. and while he Jias doing this, he heard a voice say: its all right, I’m here.” He switched on the li-ht to the interior, and noticed a man and a woman. He then left, to re urn in half an hour, when the car had <- one - There was a car about 40 yards from Christie’s shop. He stated the number and the make. Accused was in the car. Elizabeth Ann Foreman, a hoardinghouse keeper, of Dannevirke, gave evidence She knew both accused and his wife. They had a front room in her boarding house. Anyone could leave A out her knowing. She knew McGill and his wife were there at the house on Sunday evening. She went, to bed at 9.30. however. The next morning, between (.30 and 8, she saw them again. Ethel May Clark said she was on the balcony of the boardinghouse from O.rfO until 11 on the Sunday night She saw accused about seven o’clock. All the inei) went downstairs about 8 p.m. She saw accused’s car about u. 30, but could not sav how long it remained on the street, James Edwin Brown, a railway clerk, at Otane railway station, said he was at the boardinghouse at Dannevirke on Sunday, December 2, and said McGill came out of the boardinghouse into M ard Street at about 6.30 p.m. He stepped into a .cream car, and drove away. Twenty miiwtes or half an hour later, a dark car in front of the Club Hotel. It backed into the dock at the railway station buildings. Accused got out and went over to the board, nghouse. Accused went on to the balcony, and asked him if the car Would be safe there; he did not want t to be bumped. Witness replied that it would be all right. It was not a usual narking place. He thought accused said he would want the ear next mornin o . A’ garage proprietor of Dannevirke, Robert Janies Hall. said accused had three cars. Three had been garaged on his premises. One of accused’s cars was away about D. 30 or 10 that night (Sundaj), when he closed the garage. It was brought back between 9 and 10 on _Jlonday morning by accused, who said he had forgotten about it and left it outside. Witnesses’ evidence showed tliat tins car was the same make as that seen by the constable later at Palmerston Nortli. Barry Fry, of Dannevirke, said he saw a car in the railway dock at 8 a.m. on Monday morning. Tills was accused s car, ot the same make as tliat seen in Palmerston. Charles Coleman, night-watchman, of Dannevirke, submitted evidence to the effect that on Sunday night and Jionday morning the front window of the board-ing-house was wide open. At 1.20 a.m. tlie window was just the same. Thinking it strange, he flashed his torch into the room. One bed hail not been touched, but the other bed was disturbed. He visited the place four times later. There WJIS no one in the room from 1.20 a.m. to 0.3 a.m. About 20 minutes to five on the same morning lie met accused in the street. Commonplace remarks were exchanged. There was no car in the vicinity of the boarding-house at that time (between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m.). Senior-Sergeant Dinnie. in charge of the criminal registration branch of the Police Department, Wellington, said a

piece of wood and a tin with finger-prints on them were compared with similar prints on tlie records, and later were identified as those on a form signed by James Moreton McGill, with his prints. "The finger-prints on the pieces of wood and tin were carefully examined, and I am absolutely satisfied tliat they were of quite recent origin,” he said. A photograph of these finger-prints, that is tlie ones on the till and that on the piece of wood, was enlarged, also corresponding impressions ot finger-prints on the form produced. "I am satisfied beyond all doubt that the fingers which made these marks on the piece of tin and the wood were the same as the fingers which made these marks on the form produced. There were other impressions, but every impression showed sufficient details to identify it as belonging to Mr. Christie.” The impression on the wood would not last more than three days. The ones on the tins were more recent than Mr, Christie's. He thought five or six points on one finger only were enough to prove that the two prints were identical, but there was an aggregate of thirty-five iu this case. Detective E. Barling, who arrested accused, described the appearance of the lochs on the shop doors after the incident. An attempt had been made to lever open all three doors leading into the shop. At Dannevirke, accused said he knew Christie’s but had not been near Palmerston North since the beginning o December. The room was searched with the permission of accused and the tools produced were found under the bed of accused. Next day. accused called at the Palmerston Police Station to make a statement, which was produced. In it accused said tliat he had quitted Palmerston North soon after the policeman had examined Ills car on Sunday morning, and arrived home at 3.30 a.m. On Sunday evening his wife was in bed while he was playing cards , with three other men. He had been awiiy to see a client all day. Witness described the tire lever fitted with tlie murks on the shop. Accused’s counsel said accused would reserve his defence. Accused pleaded not guilty, and he was committed to tlie Supreme Court sitting on February 5 for trial.

Counsel asked for bail, which was fixed at a surety of £2OO from accused and two other sureties of £lOO each.