COMMITTED FOR TRIAL

Evening Star, Issue 21077, 14 April 1932, Page 13

COMMITTED FOR TRIAL

TOMAHAWK MURDER CHARGE LENGTHY EVIDENCE GIVEN Charged with the murder of Findlay Douglas Buchanan at Tomahawk on March 30, Lewis William O’Connor was committed for trial at the forthcoming session of the Supremo Court by Mr J. 11. Bartholomew, S.M., after a lengthy hearing of evidence in the Police Court yesterday. Gilbert'Gray Scott said ho lived in a house at Tomahawk which was commonly known as “ Tho Old Farmhouse.” He had known the accused for a couple of years. Witness was at homo on the evening of March 29, and he had some visitors that night. Flo heard them when they were coming, as they were talking very loudly. It was about 10.25, and ho was sitting in the bedroom reading. Witness heard his name called, and he went outside. There were two men in a gig or trap, and he asked who they were. O’Connor said: “It is me and a friend of mine,” and witness recognised O’Connor by his voice. They said they had been shooting and had had nothing to eat all day. They asked witness to make them a cup of tea. He said he would, and they handed him a sugar bag with a jar of beer in it. Witness waited till they unyoked the horse, which was taken into the paddock alongside tho house. They all went inside tho house. There was only the jar of beer and one bottle taken inside. Witness made them a cup of tea and a meal, and the three of them were sitting in the kitchen. When he entered the house the accused was in a very drunken condition. After tho meal they proceeded to drink the beer, witness having about five cupfuls. Ho did not feel the effects of it at all. The men stayed there from H to 1:1 hours, and all the beer, except about three cupfuls which witness tipped out, was consumed. He tipped it out because he wanted to got rid of the two men. It struck witness afterwards that the accused went out and in a good many times. His actions were those of a man who was stupidly drunk, and witness thought he had no purpose in going out as much as ho did. At one time he showed an inclination to shed tears. Both left the house together, accused going out tho side door alone. He said nothing before going that way. Witness and Dunford went out tho back door, and Dunford caught tho horse. Dunford talked for a while and then took the horse to the trap, witness going with him. Tho accused was nowhere about. Witness went to give Dunford a hand to yoke up, but Dunford said ho knew all about it, and witness left him. Ho did not look for the accused, but went inside the gate and called out that his mate was waiting for him, but got no reply. Witness went inside, and later he heard a man speaking. He went outside and found it to be Dunford, who said lie wanted his mate. Witness said his mate was not inside, and he went back into tho house again. As he did so he heard what sounded like a shot. A little while afterwards ho heard two voices, and went to tho gate and stood behind tho hedge. A man came across towards his gate fairly fast, and just as ho reached the gate witness shut it. It was O’Connor, and he came right against the gate. Ho said he wanted to get in, but witness told him to go homo with bis mate, who had been waiting half an hour for him. O’Connor wont along tho road towards tho city. Dunford was across the road with the gig. Dunford sang out “ Where’s my gun?” but witness heard no reply. That would bo about 10 o’clock. In a conversation about two weeks before Easter accused told witness he had heard that Buchanan was going to dump a child on Ids doorstep, and also that Buchanan had said ho would not keep any of O’Connor’s children. He told witness he was the father of the child, hut did not mention the mother's name. At various times before O’Connor had referred to the child, but witness could not remember his words. O’Connor did not seem troubled about Buchanan’s statements, and he did not speak of doing anything about it. No gun was taken into witness’s house on the night of March 29. Robina Nicholson Scott, wife of tho previous witness, said tho accused seemed very drunk when he was at the house. They left the house at about 12.15. _ Arthur Errol Tilbury, son of the licensee of tho Shiel Hill Hotel, said ho knew the accused very slightly. On March 29, at about 11.30 a.m., he was supplied with liquor. At about 8.50 that night accused and Dunford went to the back door of tho hotel and asked him to fill tho jar and two bottles. It was a gallon jar, and witness first of all refused, and then to get rid of them filled the vessels. He went inside then and shut the door. The accused appeared to be sober. Frederick Newburn said he lived opposite “ The Old Farmhouse,” and on the night of March 29 he and Mr Farquhar went to the store and returned home by way of the main road. That would be about 9.45, and they stayed in the kitchen. About 10.30 he heax-d a gig stop outside his place. Francis James Farquhar, a labourer, residing in the same house as tho previous witness, said that he saw a gig in front of tho house at 10.45. It wms not there at 9.45. Charles Hewitt, a baker, residing in Luke’s road, Tomahawk, said that on the morning of March 30 last he left home at 0.25, going through a track

leading from Luke’s road to the main road. Just as ho was approaching the main road lie saw the shape of a man in front of him. When witness came up to him ho was crouching down at tho side of tho track. Flo had a doublebarrelled gun across his knees. Witness said, “ Good morning,” and the man said something in reply. Witness could not say who tho man was. John Kenneth Robert Begg, a gunsmith, said that on April 1 last a gun was handed to him by the police. Both barrels were fouled, and both had been fired, in his opinion, within a week. It was quite a safe gun. It would be very hard to discharge the gun by a jar if the hammers were cocked. He could not say that it would be impossible. This he had discovered as the result of tests. A cartridge case was also handed to him. It was of a typo loaded with smokeless diamond powder. AVhen he received the gun lie discovered that ordinary beach sand had prevented tho breech from being properly closed. There were markings on two shells produced which were consistent with the gun having been in the condition in which ho received it. He also fired some cartridges from the gun after he had cleaned the sand from it. They did not show the same swelling of the brass. Tho average number’ of pellets in each cartridge was 151. Witness produced the results of tests made of the spread of the pellets when the gun was fired at various ranges. Mary Ford, a married woman, residing at Roslyn, stated that at the present time she was looking after a child named John Lewis White for tho mother, Mrs Buchanan. The mother had been in tho habit of visiting the child fairly often at first, but latterly her visits had not been so frequent. Witness thought that Buchanan sometimes came to see the child with her. Francis Stothart Tattle, a licensed surveyor of the Lands and Survey DepartmcrJ, Dunedin, produced a plan showing measurements taken in and in the vicinity of Buchanan’s house, and also a plan of the house and the locality, which showed that the shortest route between Buchanan’s house and that of the accused was one mile fiftyone chains.

Acting Detective Gibson said that on March 30 he accompanied Superintendent Eccles and Detective-sergeant Nuttall to tho accused’s house in Cranston street, Anderson’s Bay, where they arrived about 3.50 a.m. They were admitted by Mrs O’Connor, but tho accused was in bed asleep. With some difficulty he was awakened, and whilst dressing himself he remarked to witness and the others “ I done the murder,” and added; “I was not alone, but I will not say who else was there. It was my hand that pulled tho trigger.” Ho then said he was alone, and, shaking hands with Detectivesergeant Nuttall, he remarked that they were not bad sports, and that he would tell them the trut'.. He then told them that his band had pulled the trigger, and that he had heard Buchanan fall. On tho way to the police station the accused took from his pocket a cartridge smeared with blood, and handed it to witness. At 4.45 a.m. the accused, after being given the usual warning, was charged with attempted murder. He made no reply at the time, but after the charge had been entered in the charge book he asked what ho was charged with. Witness again read the charge, and the accused remarked: “Is that it?” Later in the morning witness found a discharged shotgun cartridge smeared with blood in places, about 150yds from Buchanan’s house. This was the cast first handed to the gun expert. When the accused was arrest:! there was blood on the clothing he had been wearing the previous day._ There was a cut on the tip of his thumb, and there was blood on his hand. Counsel: How did you awaken the accused ? Witness: The superintendent rubbed his head, a::! his face was smacked by his wife and Detective-sergeant Nuttall. There was a strong smell of drink, and ho impressed witness as being in a very deep, drunken sleep, and for a little while after he awoke he appeared to bo in a stupid condition. Detective-sergeant Nuttall corroborated tho previous witness’s evidence, and stated that the accused, when arrested, had asked him if Buchanan was dead. Ho smelt_ strongly of liquor, and was in a semi-drunken condition. AVhen witness took possession of the clothes the accused had been wearing on the previous night he found in tho poJret of a cardigan jacket six shotgun cartridges. He had no hesitation in saying that the accused must have consumed a considerable quantity of liquor. AVhen witness visited Buchanan’s home later in the day ho found a number of bloodstains and two wads from a shotgun cartridge on the floor of the front room, but otherwise the room was in perfect order. This evidence concluded the case for the Crown. The accused pleaded not guilty, and u. committed to tho Supreme Court for trial. The inquest on the body of Buchanan was adjourned sino die.