THE WARDROBE MURDER

Evening Star, Issue 22382, 4 July 1936, Page 19

THE WARDROBE MURDER

WANTED MAN REVELATION THOUGHT TO BE FERBON CONVICTED HERE SEVEN YEARS AGO Ta tho body of a man recovered from the harbour in Sydney on June -9 identical with that of the man wanted in connection with wardrobe murder. This is the problem that is exercising the minds of the New South Wales police at the moment, and a cablegram from Sydney yesterday stated that efforts were still being made to identify fingerprints from the body found in the harbour, and the experts had to employ, infra-red photography to aid them in the task which has not been completed. The grim discovery of the body of a woman, subsequently identified as Mabel Patricia Goodman, aged. db, single, was made in a wardrobe in. a flat in Clarence street, Sydney, close to the Sydney Harbour bridge. The body, which was thought to have been in the wardrobe for about a week, was fully dressed There was a cord ' strained tightly round the woman s throat and a severe wound in her foreTh’e keeper of the residence told the police that a man occupied the flat until about a week before the body was discovered, when he disappeared with the keys, including one for the wardrobe. The dead woman was a complete stranger to the other, occupants of the Later, it was announced that the police had a strong feeling that the wanted man was on board tne Aorangi* He was described as an Englishman, about 30 years old, sft llin in height, with brown hair, ruddy complexion, and scar across throat, and it was be- ■ lieved by the Sydney police that the woman followed the man from England about 1926. . , , , When the Aorangi reached Auckland on June 22, detectives made a thorough search for the man who, it was thought, might be able to throw some light on the Sydney, wardrobe murder mvstery, but be could not be located. ' On June 29 tbe police recovered from the harbour the body of a man whose description and clothes agreed in all essential details with those of the map wanted for the wardrobe murder. The bodv, according to medical opinion, had been in the water between a week and a fortnight. There was a large scar across the throat and an-, other scar on tho knee corresponding exactly with, the police description. Xne clothes were definitely identified by a friend of the dead man, who gave them to him. Keys found in the pocket fitted the door of the residential flat and the wardrobe in which the woman’s body was found. Another fitted a suit case discovered in the room. An attempt was to be made to obtain the- man’s fingerprints,, which would probably be difficult owing to the fact that decomposition was far advanced. The murderer’s fingerprints were found on several articles, including a bottle, which, it was believed, he used on the woman’s head prior to strangulation.

Th# cablegram from Sydney yesterday announced that the police had revealed that the name of the man wanted in connection with the wardrobe murder was William Arthur Scott. They had declared earlier that he had previous convictions in New Zealand and South Australia. Employed as a salesman by a firm selling musical instruments, William Arthur Scott, described as a “ young Englishman,” appeared before Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M., _ in the Police Court in Dunedin on October 2, 1929. The charges preferred against him ' were that he stole different sums of money totalling £4l, the property of Margaret O’Connor, of Auckland, on or about June 1, 1928, and on dates be-, tween that and-July 27, 1928. He was further charged with tho theft of £9 10e in money, tho property of Herbert Edmond Davidson, on September 14, 1929, at Dunedin. Scott was represented by Mr Calvert, and guilty to the first charge, but not guilty to the second. After evidence, the magistrate remarked that although the circumstances _ were suspicious the accused was entitled to be discharged on this charge. Scott’s activities were referred to by Chief-detective Cameron (now Inspector Cameron, of Grey mouth),-who related that on June to July, 1928, the accused was associated with a dancing school in Auckland, conducted •- by two sisters. Scott was given £4l to deposit in a bank on their--behalf, but spent it instead, later admitting that he had done so. On July* 27, he sajd he would repay the money, and Miss O’Connor, undertook not to inform the police. He made restitution of _ £ll, and gave an 1.0. U. for the remainder. The accused’s explanation was somewhat different, Mr Culvert told the conrt. He claimed that the younger sitter had given him the money pending receipt of money from England. He also claimed that he spent it to a great extent on business in connection with tho dancing school. He had had rather an unfortunate spin since he arrived in New Zealand two years previously, and he wanted to return to England. Scott appeared for sentence the following Saturday, October 5, 1929, the magistrate saying that he had the probation officer’s report, which was not favourable. It showed that the accused was somewhat of a “ social parasite ” or tending in. that direction. Mr Calvert said that Scott’s parents

Wanted him to return to England, and \ Scott himself wanted to go back. The suggestion that lie was a social parasite was perhaps one of those things that could be lived down, and ho was endeavouring to do so. He had been working steadily in his last place of employment, and his landlady said he was a good payer. The said that Scott was not a desirable citizen to keep in the country, and if restitution could be made and he returned whence he came the best thing would be done. Scott was convicted and ordered to come up for sentence if called on within three months, on that ho ' made immediate restitution and left the country permanently. In the meantime he was placed under the supervision of the probation officer. Although Scott’s activities subsequently were not definitely known, it is believed that hq left for Australia soon afterwards. The description originally given by the police of the wanted man ' coincided with the known description of William Arthur Scott when , he appeared before the court in Dunedin.