ARMED AND MASKED.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 13 July 1925, Page 7

ARMED AND MASKED.

DARING HOLD-UPS. MELBOURNE CRIME ROLL. GREAT FIGHT WITH BURGLAR. SYDNEY, July 2. Armed and masked bandits holding up motor-cars, gangs of young boye raiding business premises and stealing, and young bobbed haired girls committing theft do not constitute details from a motion picture magazine, but are Melbourne’s crime list for this week.

Each day the exploits of the gang of boy criminals evading tjje vigilance of the police become more serious. They recently broke into a big firm of motor agents and garage proprietors, poured petrol over a valuable motor-car which had been left in the garage for repairs, and then set alight to it. The fire was noticed by a passer-by, and the brigade summoned. They had a stubborn fight to quell the blaze, and had they not succeeded, about 50 other car s in the building would also have been burnt. The drawers were ransacked and abandoned. Hearing the noise of breaking glass, police ran to premises where they saw two youths making oft’. One was captured after a chase. He was found crouoliing in a doorway near-by. On him were three revolvers. The youth arrested i« only 17 and is a member of a gang of youths, known as the “Knickerbocker Gang,” which has been responsible for a large number of city and suburban robberies lately. A motor mechanic was about to start his car on the Yarra Bank Road at Melbourne on Tuesday night when three men wearing black masks rushed up. One man pointed a revolver at him, and ordered, him to put his hands up. The revolver wa s pressed to his body. A gold watch and chain and money were taken from him. In the car was a young woman, and when they had finished with their driver. the bandits turned their attention to her. While one bandit kept the girl and the driver covered with the revolver, the other searched her for valuables.-They •snatched a ring from the woman’s finger after she had implored them not to take it as it was a keepsake. They afterwards threw the ring back to her saying it was not worth twopence. After a. dramatic struggle with a masked and armed burglar, who threatened to kill him. Mr. Leonard Darling, a merchant of Toonak, threw the intruder down a flight of stairs at liis home. Mr. Darling, hearing the intruder, jumped: out of bed and rushed to the landing, to find the man with a pistol in one hand and an electric torch in the other. He levelled his pisto] and cried, “I’ll kill you!” Mr. Darling quickly closed with his assailant and a fierce .struggle ensued. Tlie man on being flung down the stairs, fled out of the front door.