ANOTHER SAFE ROBBED

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 53, 26 November 1929, Page 12

ANOTHER SAFE ROBBED

SIXTH IN A FORTNIGHT SUNDAY NIGHT DISCOVERY IN CHRISTCHURCH SALVATION ARMY OFFICER’S SUSPICIONS Dominion Special Service. Christchurch, November 25. The safe-blowers added another job to their list during the weekend, when they blew t_he_ strongroom door of the K>"'i P all , J Company at 222 bt. Asap, Street, near Manchester btieet, and secured a sum of about »■ This makes their, sixth crime within a fortnight, and so far they have netted about £390, including £3ob in their first attempt, the raid on the Paparua County Council’s office. The latest crime was discovered by the manager of the Kiwi Dairy Company, Mr. L. Hansen, who, going back to his office to work last night, found the strong-room door open. It is believed from the evidence available that the burglary was committed between midnight and 1 a.m. ou Sundav. It is not known how the gang gained an entrance to the premises. There are three doors to the place—the main entrance and a big double door opening into the store in front, and a further entrance to the store at the rear—but none of these nor any of the windows appear to havebeen touched. Entrance by’ Skeleton Key? Mr. Hansen stated this morning that he was in his office for about a quarter of an hour before 9 o’clock. During that period, he said, the front door had been open and it was possible that the thieves slipped in and hid. If this did not happen it would appear that the men had a key which opened one of the doors, probably that of the store. The idea of a skeleton key is given weight by the fact that the premises of the White Star Brewery, the place where the gang last operated, also appeared to have been opened with a key. Previous to that violence had been used. The same brand of expertness marks the work of the robbers inside. A Powerful Explosion. The offices of the company, three in number, extend along the whole face of the building, the public office, where the strong-room was situated, being connected to the store by a door. The cracksmen followed the sajpe methods in this as in similar cases. The charge—a heavy one—was laid in the keyhole, which was then packed with paper. It is not known in this case how it was exploded, as the thieves did not appear to have interfered with any of the electric lights or heating sockets. That it was blown is amply evidenced by the bulged back of the door, a very strong one, which would have resisted most efforts to open it. The job was a very clean one, and the office was not disturbed as has been the case in previous outrages. The packing was not quite as secure as usual, and the handle of the safe was blown through the glass partition of the office. The great force of the explosion is further exemplified by the fact that the keyhold facing was blown through the open doors of the two offices and finished embedded in the wall of the office on the far side of the entrance lobby, 30 feet away.

The thieves took the money from the box where it was kept, and then decamped, leaving only the burst door, the broken glass, a pile of documents on the floor of the safe, and some fingerprints as evidence of their crime. The exact amount stolen is not being disclosed, but Mr. Hansen said this morning that it was under £3O. “It was a small day,” he said, “so there was not a great deal left in the safe.” ’ Explosion Heard Outside. Captain L. F. Ward, of the Salvation Army, heard the crash of the explosion. About 12.10 a.m. he was standing at the corner of Manchester and St. Asaph Streets, outside the People’s Palace, when the explosion occurred, and, having some experience of blasting, knew at once it was gelignite. He called to two youths who were passing at. the time and asked if they had heard the noise. They had heard it, they said, but did not know where it had come from. Captain Ward suggested to them that it might he the safeblowers, and that one of them with himself should keep an eye on the Kiwi Dairy Company’s office whilst the other rang the police. “They did not seem too keen, however,” said Captain Ward this morning, “and so I let them go.” Captain Ward went to the place himself, and tried the front door, which, however, he found to be locked. There was no light showing and no movement inside, so he went back to the corner to watch for the police and to keep an eye on the place at the same time. The Cafe Continental backs on to the Kiwi Company, and he inquired there if any noise had been heard. No one, however, had heard anything. He also stopped another man in Manchester Street, who said he had heard the shot, bur' was not keen to investigate. At 12.35 a.m. he saw two constables coming from the direction of the ClockTower, and ran to meet them. He told them what he had heard, and they went to the place to see if anything had happened. All the doors were fastened, but they gained an entrance to the store at the rear. This was undisturbed. The door leading to the offices was locked, and as the constables were not certain that anything had happened there ‘ they did not attempt to break in—they then left the premises, communicating with Mr. Hansen later in the day. “I kept a close watch on the place until the police arrived.” said Captain Ward, “and they must have taken their opportunity when I ran towards the officers. Either that or else they were hidden in the place when the police searched the back.”