SUPREME COURT.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LIII, Issue 9303, 20 March 1907, Page 5

SUPREME COURT.

THE ELTHAM SAFE ROBBERY CASE.

The Supreme Court, New Plymouth, was occupied aU Tuesday wath the Eltham robbery case. Fred Fonfcanella was charged with stealing £41 10s, ihe property of ■R. H. Campbell, licensee of the Coronation Hotel. The evidence for the prosecution showed that on Sunday night, January 6th, Campbell went to bed, locking thfc bar and taking with him in has trousers pocket bis keys, including the key of the sal"* Next morning he found his trousers gone, the safe cpened, and a sum of money missirg. Suspicion fell urn Fontanella, who was employed at the' hotel and had been ' there for nrpnths, and Constable Redican stated that on aimuouncing his intention of searching accusedfs room accused said, "Search away, you will only find thirty bob." Ae| a fact he found 30s in silver in a cigar box, but also in a Gladstone bag a jljoll of notes, forty ixs. nvraiber. At fixsb the constable counted the notes, as thirtyeight, but accused said there were forty , (which proved to be true), and olaimied i the money as his own earnings, and denied that he had stolen Campbell's money. The principal point w. the defence was that accused, who had been in business in Sydney and had sold out, brought money with him to Eltham, had saved more, and that irhe money found was his own. In reply to evidence that he had professed to be << haid np" evidence was called by aoouoed's counsel (Mr Crump) to sihow that accused had a considerable sum w£ money on leaving Sydney, and in Wellington (beforte fcming to Eltham). ' At the latter plaoe he had produced thirty pounds in cash to c3|ose a negotiation he had commenced for a business. Accused said he had £50 or £60, part of which he tanked, and the rest he kept in hand. The Taxanaki News reports that His Honor Mr Justice Cooper summed up very caiefully, ' and at considerable length, occupying just over an hour, touching on the saJient points for the prosecution and for the defence, his summing up bedng ratb£r in favor of the prisoner He concluded : The whole question depends on whothcT +he prisoners etatement that he had in his possession a sum of £30 or £40 when lie came to Eltham was believed by the jury or niot. If he had, then all the rest of the prisoner's evidence, and the circumstances of the case as disriliosed by the defence, appear to be reasonable, considering ttoe prisoner's nationality — tShje fact that he was a foreigner. Then if you think hi© had not, the circumstances are absolutely inconsistent with hisi innocence.

The jury retired at 9.33 p.m tk> consider tihe'r verdict, and at 11.30 p.m announced that there was no chance of agreemient. At 1230 a.m. the jury stall failing to agrw were locked up till 9 o'clock this morning.