MAN WITH BOMB

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23886, 14 August 1939, Page 11

MAN WITH BOMB

SENTENCE OF 1 SEVEN YEARS

OFFICERS' COURAGE IN STATION EXPLOSION

The explosion of a Mills bomb during a scuffle at a police station-resulted in a sentence of seven years' penal servitude being passed at Liverpool Assizes upon .Richard Ormerod, aged 31, unemployed, of Lancaster. Omerod, who pleaded guity to causing an explosion likely to endanger life and property, being in possession of. a firearm, and three charges of shopbreaking, also asked for 37 other cases of breaking and entering to be taken into consideration.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice CroomJohnson declared: "No civilised community can permit officers in repressing crime to be attacked in the execution of their diity. But for what happened at the police station, I should have decided you "were suffering from a very misplaced sense of adventure." Mr J. Selwyn Lloyd, prosecuting, related that Ormerod was caught running away from a shop in Penny street, Lancaster, where the police had heard breaking glass at 3 o'clock in the morning. . . He was taken to the police station, and while in the charge office he suddenly raised his right arm and shouted. "Stand back you " . Sergeant Aldren and P.C. Carmichael saw the man had something in his right hand and with great courage tackled A* Mills bomb exploded between the hands of Carmichael and Ormerod, pieces of metal flew all over the office and the windows were smashed. • The constable and Ormerod, continued Mr Lloyd, were bleeding badly from wounds in hands, and both sustained fractures, while Sergeant Aldren received a wound in the leg. In Ormerod's possession were found a loaded shotgun, the barrel of which had been cut down, and seven " fingertips," apparently intended to disguise his finger-prints. On the way to the infirmary Ormerod said: "I am sorry I have hurt the constable. It was my intention to frighten you and to make a run for it-" At Ormerod's room were found a tin of gunpowder, pieces of cartridges, a tin of lead, 34 revolver bullets, and a hand grenade. Counsel added that Ormerod alleged he found the Mills bomb and hand grenade in a scrap yard. The bomb was rusty, and he cleaned it and charged it with cordite. He then filled it with old German bullets and powder from spent cartridges. Ormerod was also sentenced to terms of hard labour, ranging from six to 12 months, on the other charges, the sentences to run concurrently with the seven yeai's.