THE PETONE MURDERS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCVI, Issue 11052, 2 September 1896, Page 6

THE PETONE MURDERS.

THE INQUEST. [Per Press Association.] WELLINGTON, Sept. 1

The inquest on the bodies of Mr and Mrs Jones -was resumed to-day at Petone. The evidence in the forenoon was confined to those who first discovered the bodies.

Henry John Fleet, a next door neighbour of the victims, deposed to seeing the door opeh and a light burning in Jones’s house at 9-o’clock and 11 o’clock on Thursday night, and again at 4.30 in the morning. Had. the door been open at 8 o’clock at night, when he left the house, he was sure that he' would have noticed it.

John Hounslow (undertaker), Edward James Eohse (labourer), John Cotton (tailor). Constable Cruickshanks and Benjamin Stubley (manager of Lindsay’s boot shop, Petone) gave unimportant evineuce. Joseph Cairns said that Shore, accosted him and a lad named M’Whirter under Jones’s verandah about 6.15 p.m. on Thursday. Shore lived in Beach Street, and this was just at the corner. He asked if the newspaper boy had passed, and further, “ Have any of you kids a knife ?” He received a reply in the negative. After stopping the newsboy Shore went down Beach Street. Shore then was apparently sober.

George James Pettit, a young man employed in the blacksmiths’ workshop on the Government railways, said lie passed Jones’s store-about 10.30 on Thursday night, and saw Shore- looking into the yard which separated Jones’s store from Atkinson’s. He appeared to 1 be trying a dosed gate. Witness said, “What are you doing here, Jimmy ?” He replied, “ Closing, the gate; as he did not desire to see the poor old robbed.” Witness saw that accused was very drank, and said, “ You had better come home.” Accused gave the gate a pull and came on. He was staggering very much, and witness asked him where he had been all night. After going a short distance Shore said, “That —■ —, I should like to rob him, George.” Witness and Shore went on towards accused’s house, and witness saw him enter his gate. J. H. .Coleman, working on the stop bank contract with accused, said that he met the latter at 8.10 on Friday morning. Accused remarked that there must be something wrong in Petone, as he had met a policeman and Fred Priest, and added, “ Perhaps somebody has cut their throat.” Inspector Pender said that he arrested Shore, who, in reply to a question said, “ I know nothing about it.” Shore admitted having been drank on the previous night.

The licensee of the Empire Hotel said that Shore was in the hotel at a quarter to six on Thursday night, when he was sober, but between three and four hours later, when he again came in, he had evidently been drinking. Witness saw him resting up against the stable later in the evening, and accused was then in'a much worse state ox drink.

In summing up the Coroner said that one thing against Shore? was that he had been seen outside the house of the murdered people both before and after the time at which it was supposed the murder had been committed. The knives had also some bearing on the ease and the fact that accused had expressed a desire to rob Jones.

After deliberating a few minutes the jury brought in a verdict of wilful murder agaiust some person or persons unknown.