MANGAROA TRAGEDY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27570, 12 December 1950, Page 8

MANGAROA TRAGEDY

Elderly Man Charged With Murder PA WELLINGTON, Dec. 11. Harry Holtham, aged 73, a retired blacksmith, appeared before Mr J. Hessell, S.M., in the Lower Hutt Magistrate’s Court this morning, charged with the murder of Maxwell Burnard Just, aged 26, a farm hand, at Mangaroa, Upper Hutt, on November 25. Mr W. H. Cunningham, Crown prosecutor, with him Mr W. R. Birks, conducted the police case, Mr C. H. Arndt appeared for Holtham. Holtham who suffers from deafness, was permitted to be seated next to the witness stand to assist him to hear the evidence. He complained that he could not hear and was permitted to read the depositions. Constable Mervyn ,Harold Dedman produced photograph’s taken by him at the Mangaroa farm house and the Wellington city morgue. These showed Just seated in an armchair in the kitchen of the house, and bullet holes in the chair and walls of the room. Dr L. F. J. Taylor, of Upper Hutt, said he had been called to Mr J. J. Maher’s farm at Mangaroa at about 2.40 p.m. on November 25. Witness described the position of the deceased. He then found the accused in his bedroom. He was standing near his bed in an agitated condition and he was shaking, and bleeding from a furrowed - wound xm the right hand side of the jaw. There were powder burns and contusions on the left side of the neck. They were consistent with grazing Wounds by a .303. bullet. The accused had said he had fired three shots at himself and that he had killed the man known as Max Hill. Detective Sergeant W. J. Mason, of Lower Hutt, who arrested the accused on the day of the shooting, said that there was a warrant out for the arrest of Just before his death for the maintenance of his two children. After being warned, the accused made a lengthy statement. Witness then read out the statement. It read, in part: “Several months ago a man named Max Hill came to board at the house. From the very first I noticed that he was too friendly with my wife. I noticed that she used, to make up very good lunches for Hill, better than she used to make for the rest of the family. Some months ago Hill got the sack from the milk depot where he worked. Max and my wife jumped the train the following morning and went to Raetihi. On one occasion they went into Upper Hutt to the pictures. I spoke to my wife about it and she said she would not do it again. I do not think there has ever been anything between them. Some time ago Hill tried to shoot himself in the passage with the same gun I used. It was at night about 9 or 10 o’clock. My wife wrestled with him. My wife and children took the gun off Max and put it under my bed. “ I do not know what made me shoot Max I was up in my bedroom and all of a sudden I jumped up and said I would shoot him. It was about 2 p.m. I loaded the gun and went into the kitchen. He was sitting in the chair, where his body is now. I pointed the eun at him and said! ‘Now get ready Max. You are so good at trying to lead my wife astray, now take this.’ I pulled the trigger. I went for his shoulder. I did not intend to kill him, just to wing him. I went into the bedroom to get a bullet to do for myself. I had three shots at myself. The rifle is a .303 and I found it hard to reach the trigger. The rifle slipped off and I only shot myself through the neck. I have not been able to sleep.” At the conclusion of the police case, Mr Hessell committed the accused for trial at the next session of the Supreme Court in Wellington, starting on February 5.