SENSATIONAL TURN

Evening Star, Issue 22359, 8 June 1936, Page 12

SENSATIONAL TURN

WOUNDING OF POLICE SUPERINTENDENT FAY ROLL BANDIT SUSPECTED Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright MELBOURNE, June 8. (Received June 8, at 10.30 a.m.) There was a startling turn at the week-end to the shooting of Superintendent Brophy, when, as the result of inquiries, the police claim to have established that the man involved in the shooting was also one of the bandits who stole the pay roll at North Fitzrov. i [A message received on May 25 stated: Superintendent John O’Connell Brophy, who began duty as chief of the Victorian criminal investigation branch a week ago, was shot in the face and the right arm in some mysterious manner. The Police Department is exceedingly reticent. It is reported that four shots were fired by a gangster from a car, one bullet striking Brophy’s cheek, another his right arm, and the third the back of his neck. The fourth was over the heart, but it was deflected by something in Brophy’s pocket. He is not in a serious condition. A Police Press Bureau official, in a statement, declared that Brophy had beeu accidentally shot in the right arm while handling his own pistol at police headquarters. Newspaper reporters, however, who were banned at the detective office, ascertained that Brophy was shot by a hold-np gang, who mistook him for a prominent Melbourne bookmaker who habitually carries a large sum of money. He resides at the suburb of Parkville. News of the pay roll theft was cabled on June _4, the following message being received:— Throe armed men held up employees of Gold and Porter Ltd., boot manufacturers, at North Fitzroy to-day and robbed them of the pay roll of £1,400. The money was being brought from the bank in a delivery van, and when it was within 200yds of the factory three masked men in another car forced the van into the kerb, where they compelled the employees to hand over the money, after which they disappeared in the heavy traffic. The factory employees were armed, j