OVER THE ROOFTOPS

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 16 September 1924, Page 7

OVER THE ROOFTOPS

' POUCE CHASE SUSPECTS

DARING LEAPS FOR LIBERTY

SYDNEY, Sept. 5. A sensational chase over the rooftops of two city buildings last Saturday night resulted in the escape of three burglars who were seemingly trapped by the police in a building in George Street. They were later arrested. The three men were surprised while blowing the safe of the'Sanitarium Health Food Cafe. When the police entered, two by the back door and one the front door, it looked as if they had trapped their men, as a close watch had been kept on the' building by a. constable since the alarm had been given a quarter of an hour before. The men, however, realised that all chance of escape by the recognised exits was impossible, so made their way to the roof.

Fixing a ladder from the parapet of one building to that of another they traversed their improvised bridge. Avith milling between tnem and solid earth but the ladder. It was a drop of more than 1.00 feet, and a fall would have meant death almost instantaneously. Closely folloAved by the police they dashed across a slanting slate roof and lowered themselves down an air Arnntilator on to another roof. .From here two of them slid down into a windoAv and escaped that way, Avhile the third, who Avas some distance behind the others, was too late to escape through the window, and jumped from the roof, eighteen feet, to the yard of a chemist’s shop below. The tAvo Avho escaped by the windoAv rushed dowm the stairs in that building and escaped, so also did the third man.

On Monday three arrests were made by the police, and three youths were charged at the Central Police Court with breaking and entering. They Avere remanded.