CRIME ADMITTED

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24369, 3 September 1942, Page 4

CRIME ADMITTED

ATTEMPTED MURDER SHOOTING IN NORTH CONSTABLE FOE SENTENCE OWED VICTIM MONEY (0.C.) KAITAIA, Wednesday A police constable, Herbert Hunter Barrett, aged 41, of Mangonui, was charged before Mr. Raymond Ferner, S.M., at Kaitaia to-day with having, on July 20, attempted to murder Mate Soko Urlich, a Dalmatian, at Lake Ohia. Much local interest was shown in the case, and the Court remained crowded all day. A feature of the evidence was a statement put in by the accused, in which he admitted having shot Urlich. After 13 police witnesses had been heard, a plea of guilty was entered by accused's counsel, and he was committed for sentence. Inspector J. Fax, the officer in charge of the Northland police district, conducted the case for the police, and Mr. Reynolds, of Kaitaia, appeared for the accused. Mr. Johnson, Whangarei, watched the interests of the injured man. Loan ol £250 The evidence of Urlich was given through an interpreter. He said no was a labourer and gumdigger, aged 00, and living alone in a shack at Lake Ohia. He had known Barrett for four or five years, and had always been on friendly terms with him. In August, 1941, Barrett asked him for a loan ot £250 "to take the worries from his shoulders. n Witness lent inm the money, and received a promissory note in return. , , , On Monday, July 20, Barrett caught up to witness in his car and drove him to witness' camp, where they nad_ a j cup of tea. Barrett gave him £o interest, and promised to pay £/ lUs more at the end of August, ihey walked about a mile oyer to a ridge and accused made a plan in a notebook. Walking Through Scrub While they were walking back through scrub, said witness, he was going first. He heard two 6hots, and felt a stinging pain. He swung round and saw Barrett, who was a couple ot vards away, dropping a revolver. \\ itness prevented him from picking it up again He did not know what happened to the revolver. Barrett ran away and fell into a gum hole. He asked witness not to hit him. After running about a quarter or a mile, witness saw accused running alter him, but he made his way to the house of a man named Divich. He did not see accused again. kept a post office savings bank book in an old mattress, and it was there on July 20. He did not know where it was now. The superintendent of the Mangonui Hospital, Dr. W. R. McKcchme said the bullets were still in Lrlich s body. For eight days Urlich; s conditio.: was critical. He might suffer no ill-effects, provided his general he.dth was good. Two Shots Fired Evidence that on the afternoon of Julv 20 he heard two shots fired near his "place was given by Ivan Divich, ol Rangiputa. He said he heard someone veiling, "Help," and Urlich came out of the tea-tree near witness _ place. Urlich said he had been shot in coid blood. He was wounded in the back, and collapsed. „ \ telephone conversation with .Barrett immediately after the accident was detailed by Ivan Louie Jurhna of Lake Ohia. He said he told Barrett that Mate Itrlich had been shot. Barrett asked if Urlich had said who did it, but witness said he was not concerned about that, but only about fretting the man to the hospital. " Sergeant Simester, of Kaitaia, said accused had been in charge of the Kaitaia district and witness had found him an efficient officer. Barrett bad been lo vears in the force. A brother of the injured man, .John Urlich. said that Barrett had tried to borrow £250 from him in August ot last vear. On July 20 last accused brought him a gift of shotgun cartridges in a box. "When Barrett said. 'I don't owe anything to Jlate, i started to talk about Russia, said witness. Accused returned later that afternoon, and seemed to be a bit excited. He wanted to borrow —o. Police Investigations The investigations he had made in companv with Inspector J. Fox were outlined bv Detective-Sergeant Fin lay, of Whangarei. They reached Urlich s shantv at daybreak on July 21, but failed to find a bank book and promissory note for which they were searching They visited the accused at his home at Mangonui. where Barrett said Jurlina had reported a shooting accident to him the previous day. Sergeant Finlay said he told accused that Urlich had made a dying declaration saving that the accused shot him. \ccused replied, "I never had a firearm with me at all yesterday." Witness read to accused the dying declaration made by Urlich. in which he said he had seen a revolver in Barrett's hand and that Urlich had lent him money. Accused said, "I will make any explanation you like. I have nothing to be frightened of." . Barrett admitted having borrowed £250 from Urlich under a gentleman s agreement, continued witness, and his wife who was present, was obviously astounded. While getting dressed accused said to witness, * Look, Jim, if put a bullet into him 1 would tell you." Promissory Note Found On the arrival of the party at Kaitaia the accused was arrested and charged with attempted murder. Later witness took plaster casts of gumboot prints on Urlich's track and of the tracks of car tyres outside Urlich's place. They found the promissory note at Urlich's shanty, but the Post Office Savings Bank book had not been found. On July 24. at Kaitaia, accused made a signed confession, which witness read to the Court. In this he said that Urlich's statement accusing him was true, with slight exceptions. "It was not until he got into the thick scrub,' accused said, "that the sudden urge came and 1 could not help myself. I drew the revolver out of my pocket and fired the two shots into his back. 1 could have finished him off. but when I fired the shots I realised what I had done and called to Urlich to come back so that i could take him to a doctor." When he left Mangonui that afternoon he had no intention of shooting Urlich and it was not until ho saw him on the beach road that it came into his mind. Financial Difficulties Witness said accused went on to speak of the financial difficulties he had got into over the purchase of a car which was essential for his work and said the position had been aggravated by sickness in his family. He now realised the disaster he had brought upon his family, and he made the statement solely in their interests. He was sorry for the trouble and worry he had caused his comrades of the force. The accused was obviously overcome with emotion while his confession was being read. To Mr. Reynolds, witness agreed that at the time the confession was made the accused was suffering from severe mental strain and agony of mind. Inspector Fox corroborated the evidence given by Sergeant Finlay. Evidence regarding the accused's car allowance was ruled by the magistrate to he irrelevant.