MURDER OF CHILD

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 172, 16 April 1932, Page 12

MURDER OF CHILD

Upper Hutt Tragedy DISCOVERY IN SCRUB Missing from Her Home SAD END, TO SEARCH With a wound on the bark of her head. Vera Forster, aged four-and-a-haif years, was found murdered in a clump of scrub beyond Upper Hutt last evening. She had been missing all day. The body was discovered a hundred yards from her parents home. A piece Of stout iron piping was found lying near the body. The little girl was the youngest of the four children of Mr. and Mrs. James Valentine Forster, of Cruickshank Road, Maori Bank, Upper Hutt. She had been playing on her own around the house during the morning and her absence was not noticed by her parents until about noon. Forty People Join in Search. The parents becoming anxious, notified the police, who hastened to the, place. A search party was at once organised under the direction of Constables Joss and Stewart, the aid of about forty helpers being enlisted. The locality is fairly sparsely populated, the nearby hills being covered / with dense scrub. The house is quite close to the road, and is about four or five chains from the main north road. The search was continued throughout the afternoon, the nearby country being thoroughly scoured, without success. When darkness descended the searchers returned to report the failure of their quest, and equipping themselves with torches and lanterns set out to renew their efforts. The Discovery. The news that the little girl was missing quickly spread through the district, the search being taken up by all available. The party split up into groups to cover exhaustively the dense scrub and undergrowth. Shortly before nine o’clock two youths, James Wyeth and Frank Jones, who were among the Upper Hutt members of the search party, were exploring the bushes with torches, about a hundred yards from Mr. Forster’s house, when they noticed a splash of colour iii the scrub, and on investigating discovered the girl’s body. They called out to other searchers, who immediately joined them. Constable Stewart, who was among them, took charge until the arrival of his superior officers. The body was later removed to the Upper Hutt police station. Blood-Stained Weapon. Lying near the dead z girl was a piece of iron piping about two feet in length and almost an inch and a half in thickness. .It was stained with blood. The motive of the murder was unknown kite last evening. A superficial examination of the body was made by Dr. Tweed at the Upper Hutt police station, but the result was not disclosed. Senior-Sergeant Butler, who is in charge of tlie I’etone police station, accompanied by Detective McLennan, arrived at Upper Hutt after having been notified of the circumstances under which tlie body had been discovered.

Police Hopeful of Arrest. Inquiries were immediately instituted, and although faced with a difficult situation the police, when interviewed by the “Dominion” at midnight, were hopeful of an early arrest. The parents, in relating the girl's movements, said that about ten o’clock that morning she had a piece of bread and butter and wandered out to play. No notice of her absence was taken until 11.30, about which time it jvas her daily custom to meet the baker and go for a short ride with him. Yesterday morning, however, when asked by the parents if he had.seen the little girl he said she had not met him. As time went on anxiety =.■ become more acute and the search was begun.

Police headquarters in Wellington were notified of the crime. A posse of detectives will be sent to Upper Hutt early this morning to co-operate with Detective McLennan in pursuing investigations. The case is said to be unparalleled in the history of the district, and residents on hearing of the tragedy, were deeply shocked. The girl’s parents are natives of England, and have resided in the district for the past eight years. Mr. Forster is a farm hand.' His eldest son is sixteen, and there is a daughter fifteen, and another son twelve