TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLVII, Issue 169, 16 June 1927, Page 6

TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.

WOMAN MURDERED. BODY FOUND IN LUPINS. Per Press Association. CHRISTCHURCH, June 15. A woman, aged 30 or 35, was murdered this morning or last night in a thick growth of lupins in a paddock at Burwood, a suburb about four miles from tile city. Her head bore two terrible wounds, one over each.eye. It is not known exactly when the murder occurred, last night or ear'y to-day. The body was found by Eric Mumford, aged 15, about 1.30 this afternoon. He communicated at once with Rev. C. A. Tobin, vicar of the parish, who went to the scene and found the dead woman’s body. It was that of a short, fairly-stout woman. Her dark short hair was matted with blood and there was much blood on the ground where the body lay. t A light blue waterproof coat was covered with blood. Nearby was a short umbrella of stylish shape and also a parcel and an attache case containing a nightdress, a brush and comb and other women’s toilet requisites. The scene of the tragedy is only 20 feet from the roadway. The boy’s statement is that he saw a man running from the scene. He had frequently during the last month seen the woman meet a man corresponding to the description of the man seen running away. The .meetings occurred at lunch-time, the woman arriving on foot and the man by tram from the city. Ho does not state that he saw them meet to-day. The woman usually carried an attafche case similar to that found beside the body. It was their custom to 6it down in the broom at the spot where the body was found and to eat lunch together. The police have found a tuft of longish, dark brown hair unlike the dead woman’s near the body. Indications point to this hair having been pulled from the head of the murderor in the struggle. A doctor who examined the body said that the wounds were probably made with some sharp-edged instrument, probably of iron. In addition to the two severe wounds in the forehead, the doctor found other smaller wounds on the back of the head. The police have not yet found the weapon with which tli’e murder was committed. The police refuse all information tonight. They even refuse to state whether the dead woman has been identified or whether an arrest has been made.