THE WELLINGTON SHOOTING

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XLXII, Issue 15243, 8 January 1943, Page 3

THE WELLINGTON SHOOTING

INQUEST OPENED. Electric Telegraph—Press Association WELLINGTON, January 7. Crawford was arrested by Sergeant A. E Kearton and Constable T. W. lUes, a shot being fired at the latter as ho approached the house after the shooting Crawford, a merchant navy man, came to New Zealand three months ago. He is believed to have been a friend of Miss Salmon. He was convicted and fined £2O two weeks ago for selling sly grog liquor. The house where the shooting occurred is nr apartment house where a number of young women reside. Geti was shot through the heart and died immediately. Sparrow was shot through the head and lived for two hours. Miss Salmon had three shots fired at her, being hit in the bead, an arm and the neck. 'She is in the Wellington Public Hospital. All the parties concerned in the shooting were fully dressed. The police surgeon, Dr. E. G. Gibbs, and a United States Navy Reserve medical corps officer. Lieutenant W. A. Marmor, attended at the house after the shootings. Two people m a house about 70 yards below the two-story building where the tragedy occurred, said afterward that they heard a disturbance in the house above sufficiently violent for the pair to become apprehensive that someone would suffer injury, and one of them, a man, telephoned for the police. Hardly had he done so when a shot rang out from the house above, followed after a. short interval by two more. Then a woman screamed. He then ran down Terrace Gardens to Boulcott- Street to call a policeman and found that a constable was on his j way up. having just been notified by ; a man wh< had raced down in his bare feet. They ascended the steps leading to the house from which the. shotr. had come. The constable is stated to have approached the front door to inquire what the trouble was. The answer he received was a bullet, which passed close over his shoulder. Those on the* steps behind him scattered, and shortly afterward two more shots in the house werheard Two of those who approached the house with the constable state that soon more police* arrived, and, with veil-armed Americans who had also been called to the scene, the house and property were surrounded, it not being known whether the person responsible for firing the shots was still in the house or lurking among the trees and bushes. "Ultimately, someone called: “Come up here. There's a nan dying on the steps Entry was made to the house, where it was stated that one man was found dead, another dying from a bullet wound in the head, and a wounded girl being, attended in the bathroom, A man was apprehended there and was seen being taken away handcuffed between two policemen. A gun is reported to hav <- leer recovered. Crawford appeared before Mr Harley, S.M. on the murder charges. He was lemanded tijl January 14 on the application of Detective-Ser-geant W. McLennan. A well-built man of medium height clean-shaven, and of dark complexion, Crawford was composed in the dock, and showed no signs of stress. The two Marines will he given a military funeral. A Marine Court of Inquiry has been held to determine the cause of death. An inquest into the deaths of tinvictims wa« opened by the coroner, Mr W. G. Mellish. yesterday, when evidence of identification was taken. The inquest will not he resumed till after the murder charge has been disposed# of. A post-mortem examination of the bodies was ordered yesterday by the coroner, and was conducted by Dr. I*. P. Lynch.