ONGAROTO MURDER TRIAL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17852, 5 August 1921, Page 7

ONGAROTO MURDER TRIAL

ULA RING \ I;A I{]N G END.

CROWN CASE CONCLUDED.

LVIDEXCE OK EX PERTS

t/WNsI.L b ADDRLSSLS 10-DAY.

i»V CORUtbPONDENT.]

HA MILTON. Thursday. Ih, j»r n«u of H ;tkiii'aia To Kahu on a ' " r "° " !ur,,,-n "« Patrick Richard '"■•'•"•i", on taster Sunday . ro: U>l,, rc-Mr. Jubta-e «tringeV i!!t " 1 eine »',.urt to day. ' **' ' ' lv >''ant J. H_ Sweeney said j ■: in; cm .gated the a-cc|used regarding : ; .c.L t> d\saj'(>oui uii' e, a:id «a.n,'cd hun l " l "" u " : UuL ' l - Witness also said that >. lucre imd been an a<A id cut then was <<• tmre to .say so . A tlien made - st-d tjWnont m which he sa.id that, he ..ml dec.-a.-cd returned home on the Sun- '■ night. Ihe next morning accused ■c:t Ungajuto for .Mokai. When he "••'t Liliot was ui bed, and accused | i"i-rv>A-«d his coat. With regard to thai ' "J'U'i'i .°u U ' t: Sunday, tho accused ' , i" 3 , had not tiled his guu tliaL day I j ot , three tunes. lie saici | ' v d,£> "ark vx hen tbey -jgut home on the i >.;intlav night. ; uith Ilia vu>it to Mokai, ac- j ' tA>cl that he had some monev j r.ivJi ho had saved and which no one) *■'n he had. He said he looked for! ■ ::ct with Sarah \\ lliiains, but had ioui;d no trace of hun. Witness read ; c siaument to tlie accused, who said understood it clearly. At this time | '''i had not been Recovered, and 1 r ..lot b tiisappeaxance was a complete ! m>siery. Witness searched the de- : • '•vised s whare. 'Into bed was made and j e room was tidy. Witness found an j r :<-l tv cartridge _ box which had cono. tied Number 5 C.A.C. cartridges, but ">•> guu or cartridges. In the accused's " nare witness found two 'empty cartridge " vvtlic -h had contained Number 3 1 A.L. cartridges. Accused's Second Statement. Later. and before the accused was arrested, witness took a second statement the'accused. In this statement accused denied giving a £5 note 'ii Norman to change for Sun, but said tie lost a £6 note at Mokai. He denied • hanging a £10 note, and said he did not nave a wallet of notes. He also cb-nied the alleged conversation with hamuton. Accused was shortly after enlarged with murdering Elliot. He made no reply, and was conveyed to Eotorua. Witness gave corroborative evidence regarding the condition of tlie bodv and clothing. W Uliam Tonks, Government analyst Auckland, said he found blood present on the riding trousers and pumice stones. He could not say from chemical tests it was human blood or otherwise. Bacteriological Tests. ® Frederick L. Ajmitage, Government bacteriologist at Auckland, said that bv bacteriological tests he could differentiate between tne blood of humans and various Animals. Two tests were employed One was the precipitant, test which was generally by scientists as a reliable test. The other was known as the " fixation of complement" test. Witness described the methods of conducting the two tests. The two were entirely separate, but each was specific in the differentiation of various bloods. Since the last trial he had made about 1300 tests. The " fixation <">! complement " test was generally used as a check upon the precipitant test. V. itness had conducted a number of tests upon tiie tea-Lree and puniica produced, and found human blood present on them. itness . tested the riding pants. There were nine sep_arate stains. Those on the upper part of the breeches were human : blood, but on the lower portion the stains ) " ere from pig blood. These results were j based on both the tests. i Differences in Blood. Cross-examined, witness said he had frequently made tests for differentiating between human and mammal blood. Witness was cross-examined at-length regarding the method of making the teste, and at counsel's request read published letters from two authorities pointing out the unreliability of certain tests and suggesting that an unjust verdict might be given through placing too much reliance on laboratory w*ork_ Witness added that he had performed the " fixation of complement " test 3000 times. There was no essential difference in the blood of human beings when healthy or suffering from venereal disease. It was only a question of degree as both bloods could fix complement, but in different degree. The case was entirely different when testing between the bloods of humans and animals, where they were dealing not with slight differences "of one kind, but of 'enormous differences in two entirely different kinds. The Accused's Gun, William Henry Hazard, gunsmith, of Auckland, described the effect of' shots fired from a double-barrelled guu such as that belonging to Kahu. The holes in the deceased's singlet could have been caused bv both barrels being fired simultaneously. The two cartridge cases handed to him by j the police appeared to have been fired j within a fortnight before they were handed to him. The cases of the cartridges he had fired from the gun reproduced exactly E;miJar markings to those on the two cartridges found. These markings were peculiar. At the request of the jury witness fired a couple of shots out of the gun at the rear of the Court and handed the empty cases immediately to the foreman. I his concluded the ca.se for tho Crown. Counsel's addresses will be heard toirr.rniw, when tho caso should conclude.