"GAME'S UP, AMY!" ROMANCE OF CRIME.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LVI, 28 April 1909, Page 5

"GAME'S UP, AMY!" ROMANCE OF CRIME.

WOMAN'S REMARKABLE CAREER OF FRAUD.

MASQUERADING AS A MAN.

A HONEYMOON THAT NEVER WAS STARTED.

DUNEDIN, April 26. Considerable excitement was caused here to-day when it became known that

a • woman masquerading in man's clothes had been apprehended by the police*

Tbfs circumstances connected- with

the cSSe are most remarkable, and the story is more like a romance than anything ehe. The central figure is Amy Bock, alias Channel, alias Shannon, alias Vaffane, alias Skevington, alias 1 Percy Carol" Redwood — a small, trim woman akrat forty-nine years of age. Born in Victoria^ s&<9 came to New Zealand in 1884, and has been well

known to tire police all over the Dominion. SHE SELLS UP A HOME.

It is alleged" that early in January she arrived in Dunedin, and obtained a situation with a Roslyn family by the name of Roy as a domestic. The family went for a holiday, and left her in charge of the house, and sne is said to have forged her master's name to a receipt purporting to sell the furniture in the house to her, and then called on a business man in Kaikorai Valley, and succeeded in convincing him that the receipt was genuine, with the result that she gave him a Bill-of-sale over the furniture, and got £30 in return. Next , day she disappeared, and from that day until last Saturday detectives have held a warrant for her arrest on a change of obtaining £30 by false pretences. IN A NEW ROLE. She appears to have proceeded to the Nuggets and taken up her residence, under the name of "Percy Carol Redwood," in a boardinghouse kept by Mr and Mrs Ottaway. "With her hair cut short, and dftssed in the latest fashion, "Percy Reedwood" soon became a favorite at the Nuggets. He . had plenty of money — a wealthy mother living at Hamilton, in the Waikato — and a nice gentlemanly manner. "Yes," said a Dunedin resident in speaking of him, "I -knew him, and he was an 'all-right chap. 7 He had plenty of money, and if you wanted anything he was the boy to buy it for you. We went to the theatre' with him, and he would have been quite disappointed if mv wife and daughter had' not gone with him.. My daughter once said she liked jmples, and he had a box sent to 1 her. I once said I would like a paroquet, and, he said he would get one for me from his uncle in Melbourne. , ENTER CUPID. "Mr Redwood" appears to have found in Miss Ottaway, daughter of the boardinghouse-keeper, aged about thirty-two, a most desirable acquaintance. A friendship sprang up which ripened, and finally ended with disastrous results for the young lady, the wedding being celebrated on the 21st inst. All this time "Mr Redwood" had had an abundant supply of cash, and the Ottaways were suspicious at no time of their boarder. Mrs Ottaway was* more than satisfied with^ his genuineness, because there was a letter written to her by his mother, stating : "I have just had a talk over the marriage with my boys, and am going to town to J see my lawyer. We have decided to give Carol £3500, and I will' give another £1000 for the house and furniture, fas he wishes to live in Dunedin." This was signed "Frances Redwood," but apparently was written by "Percy Redwood" himself. Then there was another letter bearing the print of the Auckland Drainage Board, and purporting, to be from the secretary of that Board, stating that as he was- retiring "Mr Redwood" Vas to be appointed at a salary of £7 a week. Representatives of two Dunedin firms also appear on the scene. Apparently "Mr Redwood" had been to them with documents giving detailed accounts of sheep and horses owned by him in the Waikato. He wanted a mortgage fixed up, and one firm advanced £10 on the strength of the supposed proof which was forthcoming being guaranteed by another firm, and the firm which had advanced the £10 forwarded a cheque for £130. THE. WEDDING— AND AFTER. The wedding ceremony was performed by an Anglican minister, a Presbyterian clergyman assisting. A number of congratulatory speeches were made, including one by Mr Malcolm, M.P. The honeymoon was abandoned, however. At a timely moment- a Dunedin resident, who was suspicious of the bridegroom's sex, spoke of his suspicions, with the result that the couplo did not leave on a proposed tour to Melbourne, for which tickets had been purchased dut of his own pocket by a friend, who subsequently returned them to the shipping company and had his money refunded. It is understood that it was "Mr Redwood's" intention to give Miss Ottaway the slip at the Bluff on the way to Melbourne on the supposed honeymoon, and Rfsve a letter explaining all. "THE GAME'S UP, AMY!" On Friday Chief -Detective Herbert and Detective Hunt paid a visit to a boardinghouse in Dunedin, where it was known Amy Bock had stayed, and there they found the woman's clothing. On Saturday Detective Hunt hurriedly took his departure for the Nuggets, and that night arrested "Mr Redwood." Detective Hunt, calling at Ottawav's house, asked to see "Mr Redwood," who came downstairs smoking a pipe. "The game's up, Amy!" said the dotective, and Amy merely answered "All right." She was brought to Dunedin this morning. [ The warrant on which the prisoner was arrested charges her with having, about the middle of January, obtained £30 from Arthur Ellis by means of false pretences. Accused, it is understood, has made a clean breast of matters relating to this charge and also other charses on which she is liable to be nrn vented. ' OTHER NOTABLE SWINDLES. Amy B<">ok is often spoken of by meTnlinrs of the polf"« for^p ns o^e of the T"oc,t peculiar criminals they have ever come across. Her peculiarity rests in

the fact that time ard again she has been known to commit serious frauds as if merely for the fun of the thing. The proceeds of her depredations she as been known to hand over to others, lthough she has probably risked a long erm of imprisonment in order to mass the wherewithal of her gei:erosHer career of crime has been a long one — extending over something like* twenty years. During that time she has defrauded innumerable people. In nany cases the fraud has never been traced definitely enough to her to jus;ify a prosecution, and in a large nnm>er of others the people who have been 'taken in" have not been willing to ;iv© evidence against her for fear of ooking" foolish, and so she has esaped, IHE FUKmTURE TRICK. Her last performance — iliat of marrrag a girl under pretence of being a lan — easily eetfjises hex previotts lest, ut the "furniture trick" she has oarled out before. Some time ago Am;/ tock was in WelTingfon, and a poTi:e> fficer at tbat time stationed 1 Hirer* told Times reporter some very am uiaai lories about Her; One of them was of ti exploit ivery similar to tlfafc nath which she is kow charged. #h/- w«s travelling dcrn to BunedTn soni3 rears ago, Mid off Bnß Drat sb© met a iarjy belonging to that city to wh-?ru. siie made herself agreeable — she Rad a with- frer" wH5j& always" inspired onnde~nce in her dJupes. The lady was so charmed 1 by Her new" acquaintance tFiat she invited her to travel in ths same railway carriage from Christchur it *o Dunednr. Amy Bock — whose namg at the tim© was prob'aWy Fal'fbur or Chamberlain, or that of some oth»>r celebrity — was, onrly too pleased* to F'eep> the lady company, and* continued to 1.0 agreeable. Then, "what was more l.atural than that sire should be invjfod to stay a day or two at the ladVs Dimedin house? The invitation was acceptied, of cc-Tirse, and" all went well for si day or twc>, until the lady proposed an outing for the family at Waitaia. day Miss ChurchflT or Lloyd-Gfeorge (alias Amy Bock) fiad such a headache that shfe could not tnint of going ant. But why sTronld she not stcjp at home for the day, and then the servants could have a day off, too? This was: agreed to. The family left for Waitatl, and the servants departed whither they , pleased. Barely had the party time to leave the city "when Amy Bock was off fco a money-lender, and in "next to no time" had raised a good round sum , on the furniture. When the family returned' Amy had gone, but three months later the "financier" called for liis money. Then things happened. A WELLINGTON TRANSACTION. ,Amy once committed a very clever Fraud — for she really is/ accomplished — in this very city of Wellington. She wind that a certain young man, the anly son of a widowed mother, was in a bank in a not very distant' suburb. 3he also knew that a certain tradesman n a fairly large way of business was rery friendly with the young man and 11s mother. This knowledge, combined ,vith a little ingenuity and the ability jO ride a horse 'at a break-neck pace, • served Amy admirably. One day the tradesman was surprised to see a lady ide up to the door of his place of justness at a furious rate. She wanted ;o see him so particularly. Mrs 's son had been tampering with his books, md now his defalcations had been dissovered. Unless he paid up at once he vould be arrested, and he had no noney. Would Mr oblige Mra by lending, her £20 at once. Of ;ourse, Mr tumbled over every;hing in his shop rushing after the £20. But this was not the end of it. in hour or two after — just long enough, or an expert horseman on a fine nount to get to the suburb and back — ;he lady again drew rein, at the shop loor, her horse in a latherl Another £15 was wanted at once. She got the £15 and rode off. TJie benevolent tradesman then went to .sympathise vith the sorrowing mother — ard found ;hat he had been "had." That case lever came before the Courts, because ;he victim could not be persuaded ta nake a public confession of his trouble. A REAL ARISTOCRAT. Amy Bock is about forty years of age md is said by the police to be remarkably clever. She is of good appearince, and talks remarkably well. Hei* ione of voice and wide knowledge altrays make her victims for the time being think thai they have found a. real , £ aristocrat. She has been convicted many times in various parts of the Dominion.