MURDER CASE REVIVED.

Otago Witness, Issue 3098, 30 July 1913, Page 36

MURDER CASE REVIVED.

THE PAP AKA 1.0 TRAGEDY. MR RENNIE'S WATCH DISCOVERED. (From Our Own Correspondent.) OAMARU, July 28. The recollection of the sensational murder of Mr W. H. Rennie, schoolmaster at Rapakaio, over six years ago, has been revived by the finding of the murdered man's watch and a revolver and o 5 cartridges in a paddock belonging to Mr Tomlinson on the Steward Settlement. It will be remembered that a man named Findlay, who lived at Tomlinson’s, was charged with the murder and committed to stand his trial for the. crime, but the jury acquitted him The evidence was of a purely circumstantial nature, the strongest points against Findlay being that ly; was seen about the place and that his Conduct was generally of a kind not susceptible of easy explanation. No trace had been found of the murdered man s watch, bicycle or razor, though a small army of and constables under the personal direction of Commissioner Dinnie had diligently searched tin? land and dragged the water of the Waikiki River. Subsequent to 1‘ indlay s acquittal some bathers found a bicycle, which, though not positively identified, was believed to have been Mr Rennie’s, in a pool of the Waitald at the end of the Ferry road, which (Kisses Mr Tomlinson s farin'. Then a razor, fully identified as having belonged to Mr Rennie, was found in one of Mir Tomlinson’s paddocks, hindlay was thereupon arrested and charged with burglary at Mr Rennie’s house, an indictment for the more serious charge being barred bv his prior acquittal upon that charge. At the first trial for burglary the jury failed to agree, Dut when tried again a verdict of “ Guilty ’ was returned. Mir Justice MVilliams declared Findlay, who had a bad record, an habitual criminal, and passed upon him an indeterminate sentence of imprisonment. The case was carried to the Appeal Court, which however sustained the verdict. Now, after the lapse of oyer six years, the strongest link in the chain of evidence has been obtained by the discovery of Mr Rennie’s missing presentation watch. It ami the revolver and cartridges, which from the surroundings appear to have been wrapped up in some light material, were turned up by Mir Tomlinson in a paddock contiguous to the junction cf Ferry road and the Waitaki River, where the bicvcie was found. On making bis find Mlr Tomlinson at once, and without further disturbing tilings, sent for the constable at Gleiiavy, who took charge of the watch, etc. CHIEF-DETECTIVE BISHOP INTERESTED. (Faou Otth Own Correspondent) CH RI STY' H URCH. J uly 23. The news of the finding of the gold watch belonging to Mr Rennie, the victim of the Rapakaio murder in 1906, was read bv Chief-detective Bishop (now of Christchurch) with great interest, as he was “in charge’’ of that case, which created wide spread interest at the time. Speaking to a News reporter, Chief-de-tictive Bishop gave a brief outline of the case. Mir William Hay Rennie, a schoolmaster, was found lying dead in bed in the front bedroom of his house at Rapakaoi, earlv on the morning of October 2, 1906’ There were two bullet wounds very close together in the right temple of the dead man. Indications pointed to the fact that the murderer had got into the house, through the kitchen window, had walked through the passage, and opening the door of the bedroom bad fired two shots from a revolver from a distance of a few feet, killing Mir Rennie in his sleep. The murderer had then taken Mir Rennie’s watch and money and some other property, including a white-handled razor, which was one of a set of six. ihe affair caused a tremendous sensation, and suspicion fell on John Findlay, who bad been Jivimr in a back room of Mr Tomlinson’s house about five miles from the scene of the murder, and who disappeared on the day the murder was discovered. Mir Rennie’s bicycle bad been stolen, and Findlay, riding a machine which closely resembled the missing one. was seen by two rabbiters on the road leading to the Waitaki River ferrv going in the direction of the river. On the morning of October 2 the missing razor was found in a paddock of Mir Tomlinson’s section where Findlay had been rabbiting on the morning of the murder. Findlay was arrested later on. and was tried for murder and acquitted. The bicycle was found in the Waikiki River, hut all efforts to recover the watch and revolver failed