ESCAPE FROM GAOL

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 January 1941, Page 2

ESCAPE FROM GAOL

toUfe MEN ON ifeiAt ! ~— SUPERINTENDENT’S EVIDENCE I ;,j V —■ • <-G ! d i [PER PRESS ASSOCIATION.] AUCKLAND, January 16. Four prisoners, who made a sen-? sational escape from the Auckland prison on the evening of October J, after an alleged attack on, three ders, one of whom was seriously injured, were brought before the Police Court, to-day. Three of the prisoners were caught hiding ip the bush at Titirangi on the.morning of October 7, and the fourth on the west coast road next morning. The prisoners, who escaped were. Randall Reginald David Smith, 27, labourer, serving, a .life sentence for murder;,David Fraser lyatson, 21, seaman and labourer, serving a term for arson; Bryan James O’Hchir, 23, serving a term for burglary; John Henry Silva, ,25, labourer, and bptcher,. serving a term for breaking, entering and theft. Each was charged to-day with the attempted murder of Joseph Graydon Crawford, a warder,, and with assaulting two other warders. Further charges against the. various prisoners will be preferred later, including the unlawful conversion of motor-cars, the theft of one car, general goods, clothing, and money. Allan Roy Duff, a prisoner who did not escape, was also charged with attempted murder and assault, attempt to break prison, and using violence to break prison. . . When the Court, opened at .10 o’clock, the public section at the rear was packed. Mr. Orr Walker, S.M., is presiding, Detective-Sergeant Walsh is prosecuting, and Mr. K. Aekins is defending all the prisoners, who entered the Court handcuffed in pairs, wearing white prison trousers, grey shirts, and tweed coats. . They evinced a keen interest in the proceedings, and particularly in the exhibits. ..... i ■ .

William Thomas Leggett, Superintendent of the prison, gave evidence that at about six o’clock on the evening of Tuesday, October 1, the cells of certain prisoners would be unlocked, according to custom, for drill class in a room on the second floor at the end of the south wing. Witness was on annual leave. In response to a telephone call to his home, he went to the prison about 6.30. An ambulance was preparing to leave with the three injured warders. Witness went to the dome, where the prisoners are mustered before being taken to the drill classes. He saw pools of blood on the floor. He visited the basement of the east wing, and noticed that the grille leading to the passageway was open. He also found that the double grille gate leading to the yard, was open. It would take considerable force to break the heavy chain ,and padlock. A broken chain and padlock was lying near the gate. Fie also found a pegging key, a bloodstained hammer, and also a weight in a vegetable barrow. A.leather and bloodstained white tape were attached to the weight. Bloodstains, on ,the walls of the cell, previously occupied by the prisoner Smith, indicated that one of the warders had been locked in there, and had been attempting to open the door. In the cell occupied by Silva, witness noticed several patches of blood, and. bloodstains on the sheet covering the bed.

ATTACK ON WARDERS. , Arthur Burgess, warder, described the assembling of prisoners from various wings. Eight prisoners from the east wing, and one other prisoner, were in the dome with witness, when “things seemed to stop.” He had a faint recollection of being pushed into the cell with Warder Scholium, but had no idea who hit. him, nor what he was hit with. He remembered being removed to the hospital. He had several cuts over the head and the right ear. Warder Scholium, probationary warder, gave evidence of being attacked and locked in the cell with Warder Burgess. He could not say who hit him. He had several injuries to the head and a finger broken. Joseph Graydon Crawford, warder, gave evidence he could only remember going to the north wing to unlock some prisoners for the drill class. He was in hospital until December 6. The luncheon interval was taken.