MURDER IN A FLAT

Evening Star, Issue 17031, 30 April 1919, Page 7

MURDER IN A FLAT

THE SYDNEY TRAGEDY. Further details are just to hajid of the murder in Svdnev of Hugo Tuck—known as Albert Spencer—on April 12. and in connection with which a New Zealander named Doyle has been arrested. The murder took place in a flat in Elizabeth street, and when the police arrived they found Tuck unconscious. He died shortly after reaching the hospital. The proprietor of the flat, Mrs Fitjs- - took the victim's breakfast to his vooia at 9 o'clock, when he was ill his usual gOoS health. At the time there was in the room a youth of about 19 years. She did not know him, but it was not uncommon for Tuck to have visitors, and she took no notice of this one. At that time it was remarked that the morning paper had not arrived, and the visitor said: "Oh, I'm going out in a minute; I'll get a paper and bring it back." Mrs Fitzpatrick "does not remember that anything else was said then, and she left the men together. At about 11 o'clock the maid, Mabel Julian, was surprised to see water running down the stairs from Tuck's rooms, and went up to ascertain, the cause. She found the bathroom flooded, and noticed that the tap was still running. She turned this off, and called for the tenant of the rooms to inquire as to why he had allowed the bath to run over. She got no reply, and, making an entry to the room, found Tuck lying on the floor at the foot of the bed. "He was not in his regular sleeping room, but in what he called his spare room. It was seen that he had been injured', and the police were communicated with. Stains in the room indicated that the murderer had washed his hands in the both. Though it is not supposed that- robbery was the motive, for rings on the lingers of the iniural man were not removed, it is remarkable that an attempt had been made to force open a leather trunk in which were found, subsequently, letters, money, and jewellery. The instrument used on the trunk was a screwdriver, but the person using this may have been disturbed and left before he succeeded in getting the trunk open. One" of the rings on the finger of the dead man was worth about £BO, anfl there were others. If robbery had been the motive it is likely these would have been the first valuable's to be secured by the murderer. The body was found behind the door of the room, lying face downward, and from the injuries it would appear that the unfortunate man had been struck a heavy blow with some blunt instrument, the effect of which was the facture of his skull and his instant unconsciousness. No one in the building seems to have noted the going out of the early visitor of Tuck. But it is considered that if he went out, as he said he was going, to get a paper, he did not return. Had he come back within an hour he' must have found the man where he fell after being struck down. It is, considered likely that he left, and possibly another may have entered after he had cone.

An element of mystery is added by the intrusion of a dog, of which no one in the house knows anything, except that it does not belong to anyone in the flat, and had not been seen there until it was found by tho police in the room in which the man was. The animal is a well-bred fox-terrier, and carries a leather collar. The lettering on this may assist the police. The dog is now in the hands of the officers m charge of the case, and may turn out to be a valuable link in the chain to be forged. It is stated that after the body was removed to the hospital a letter addressed to a dignitary of one of the churches was found in the room in which the tragedy was enacted. On this were instructions that it was to be delivered to the addressee in the event of anything untoward happening to the writer. The instructions were carried out, and the letter was delivered by order of the police.