THE POLICE SHOOTING

Grey River Argus, 16 June 1936, Page 5

THE POLICE SHOOTING

ACTION TAKEN To Correct Press Reports (Aust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.) (Received June 25 at 9.15 p.m.) MELBOURNE, June 5. At the police inquiry to day Detec-tive-Inspector A. T. McKerral, Chief of the Criminal Investigation Department, gave evidence regarding conflicting stories as to the wounding of Superintendent Brophy, and as to the measures adopted to clear the matter up, he said, as “newspapers had on the Alonday following the shooting, published information in which there were discrepancies and departures from fact.” The shooting was originally believed to have been accidental, but later Detective Carey told witness that he had seen Supt. Brophy at the hospital. and had ascertained that it. ms not accidental. Sir Thomas Blarney, the Chief Commissioner, then had Instructed witness to correct the accident. story, and to give the newspapers the true facts.

Air. Stretton (who is assisting the Royal Commissioner) asked witness: If an informer rang you in order to make an appointment to tell you about a prospective bank hold-up, would you meet him right on the steps of that bank?

Inspector McKerral: Probably no. Air. Stretton: Would you, as Supt. Brophy purports to have done, have met the informer right in the centre of an area where motor bandits were operating Inspector McKerral: The circumstances are different. You have usually to keep an appointment at the spot named by the informer. Otherwise, he will not come.

Inspector McKerral added that he saw nothing wrong in what Superintendent Brophy did. It was quite good detective work. The doctor attending Supt) Brophy believed that the whole thing had been accidental, despite the fact that the wounds were widely distributed.

Detective-Sergeant H. Carey detailed the efforts which he made to find out the facts of the shooting of Supt. Brophy. He said that Supt. Brophy was doubtful whether he could identify his assailants, but he hoped to pick up an informer who might help him.

Sergeant Carey added that, as a result of his investigations, he was now planning to take “certain action in a certain direction, but it is not desirable to divulge what is going on.” Air. Stretton: Do you agree with Supt. Brophy that the name of the informer in this case is sacred? Detective-Sergeant Carey: I do. Detective O’Keefe is, at this moment, obtaining information that might be of value.”