THE AUCKLAND TRAGEDY

Evening Star, Issue 19775, 27 January 1928, Page 8

THE AUCKLAND TRAGEDY

HO MOTIVE SHOWN WIFE PROBABLY SHOT IN SLEEP (Pest United Press Association.] AUCKLAND, January 26. No reason can be assigned for the tragedy at Point Chevalier. The house, a modern bungalow, was comfortably, though not. expensively, furnished. The couple appeared to he in fair circumstances, and the tradespeople say that they always paid their way. Clean, but untidy, the interior of the house presented the appearance of having been left unswept tor at least a couple of days. A gramophone was open in the sitting room, and there were records lying about. Music was littered on the top of the piano. Gloss was last seen alive yesterday afternoon. He called at the grocery store of Airs Walker and obtained a bottle of bovril. His manner was peculiar, and Airs Walker was particularly struck by tlie fact that, he did not wait for the docket. Only tho previous day ho had called at the store to pay the family grocery bill, and on that occasion he had made a similar purchase. “ I thought be. seemed very quiet yesterday,” said Airs Walker. “He walked in with, a vacant look about him; simply said; ‘Give me a bottle of bovril,’ took it, and walked out again. I said: ‘Won’t you take tho docket? ’ but ho had gone almost, before I bad got the words out of my mouth.” hi common with the majority oi people living in the neighborhood, Mrs Walker knew very little or nothing about Closs, but she was on friendly terms with Airs Closs, who often told her little domestic details, and who was in the habit of coming in every Tuesday afternoon for a chat. “She often talked about her daughters.” said Airs Walker, “ and once she said it was not the same for them now that they had a stepfather, but 1 never asked her about her first husband, and f know nothing about him.” Airs Walker said that Closs paid tho hill on Tuesday with a £o note, all the couple owed for now being a few sundries.

[A five-roomed bouse, Mo. J2 Raymond road, a, pleasant, thoroughfare leading down to Point Chevalier Bear)), was the scene of a shocking double tragedy. Peter Closs, a laborer, aged about thirty-two, was discovered just, before noon lying in the back doorway in bis pyjamas with bis head shattered by the discharge of a. smgie-barrelled importing gnu, which lay across (be body. Jn the fiont bedroom was found tbs corpse of bis wile, Mabel Closs, whose skull was blown almost completely away. The gun bad evidently been tired at her from behind as she lay in bed. When found the body of Mrs Closs was clothed in a nightgown, and her hair was about her shoulders, suggesting that she was shot in her sleep. There were twin beds in tho room, and Mrs Closs occupied the one nearest the window. The second bod, which had been slept in, was unoccupied. Tho police have formed the theory that the unfortunate woman was shot by her husband as lie sat on bis bod. Closs had evidently left the bedroom and passed through the sitting room, emptying and reloading the gun as lie went. An empty cartridge case was found lying in the middle of the floor near an open gramophone in the sitting room, doss’s body was found huddled in the back doorway, with the gun lying across him. A loop of string tied to tho trigger was evidently tho moans by which he had discharged the weapon.]