Sensational Hold-Up In Melbourne

Northern Advocate, 11 June 1936, Page 7

Sensational Hold-Up In Melbourne

£United Press Association. —By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.} (Received 10 a.m.) ' MELBOURNE, June 10. encounter with two masked

“A Subterfuge?”

men at. a rendezvous prearranged with a member ,of the underworld was described by Superintendent John Brophy at the. opening sitting today of the Royal Commission, which is inquiring into the shooting of. Mr Brophy; and the authenticity of the statements made by the police in connection with the matter.

Mr Justice Macindoe is the Royal Commissioner.,- Mr L. Stretton, who is assisting the commission, said the entire incident ; was thick with confusion and mystery, Mr Brophy, -whose arm was in a sling; related;that on the night of May 22 he received a telephone message from a member of the underworld; who offered to give him information about gunmen who were operating around the city in the vicinity- of Parkville, He agreed tp meet the man at a spot arranged by the informer. ,y. -cPrivate Car.. Used .; .■ . The commissioner asked for the man’s name, and Mr Brophy undertook to supply it privately, in order to protect his informer, - from the vengeance of companions. Later that evening, he said, he sought the use of a private car belonging to Mrs Orr, wife of the licensee of the Tattersall’s Hotel, as it would not have been desirable to use police cars, with the numbers of which the underworld were familiar. v

The barman at Tattersall’s Hotel, named Maher, drove the car, and Mrs Orr was a. passenger. Mr Brophy said

the car was stopped at the spot in ' Royal Park, arranged by the informer. Suddenly Mrs Orr exclaimed to • Maher: “There is a man alongside the car, Billy.” At that moment, continued Mr Brophy, he noticed a man on each side of the car, one of whom was masked. The other flashed a torch into the car, and called out: “Hands up and keep quiet.” He also exclaimed: “It is Brophy.” Dive for Pistol. : Mr Brophy added: “I dived for - my pistol, which is of small calibre, and the man shouted: “Do not shoot.” I did hot hesitate, however.. I fired and the man fired back, the bullet shattering: my wrist. I fired again, and am practically certain I wounded him. He continued firing, and four more bullets struck me. The other man disappeared.”

The commissioner: “Were you both shooting?” Mr Brophy: “Yes, one shot punctured a tyre.” .. . -

Witness said the men sped away in a car. Maher pursued them until he was compelled by the flat tyre, to stop. Mr Brophy explained that, the reason why he gave an incorrect account of the shooting in the first place was that he did not want tc- compromise Mrs Orr and another, woman friend, nor did he want his. own wife and daughwho were invalids, to hear he had been shot by bandits. He was convinced that the informer was not associated with the shooting. Mr Stretton: “Did not it occur to you that it was unusual for a man of your rank to go out of ordinary duty?”

A Big Surprise. ™ T3mnhv: “I do ordinary duty if ■ Mr ... It i S done in other States.” • ne .™ not occur to you that there w °‘ a d certain amount of danger that ! +%L“If I had thought there was dancer I would not have taken the danger ! - t was as blg a two ladie • criminals a s to me.” surprise to tn picked a traf“COUld y °“ to drive your car?”-"I W broth6r de ‘ eCtiVeS in a case like this- ga y was no Witness went on pc . lice 0 r the use calling on ie stackers, as patrol to search or search for, they did not know who

Inquiry Into Shooting Of Police Superintendent

“I thought I was doomed, as I could not give them information.”

Mr Wilbur Ham, K.C., who is appearing for the “Sydney Morning Herald” and its reporters, said he was going to suggest that the original accident theory was a subterfuge to hide the fact that Mr Brophy was out with women.

Mr Brophy said: “There was nothing sinister. I was not in the car with one woman, but with two. I was not responsible for the accident story told to reporters, and I had no intention of deliberately deceiving the chief of police. Sir Thomas Blarney,”

Mr Hani suggested that Mr Brophy did everything to help his, assailants, to which Mr Brophy replied that if he had given full information, his assailants could have been in Hongkong before he was aware of their movements; ■ ■ ■ ■ ' v