NOTED GAOL BREAKER

Taranaki Daily News, 29 November 1924, Page 12

NOTED GAOL BREAKER

A RESOURCEFUL CRIMINAL. REPEATED CLEVER ESCAPES. AX ADVENTUROUS CAREER. Sydney. Oct. 16. A record in gaol .breaking in South Australia has been established by a noted tirief named William Digby. His latest t wO escapes were accomplished within a period of two days. He had already become known as a resourceful gaol-breaker, having eeeaped from Yatala gaol in 1921 and having two other daring attempts to his credit —or discredit. Special precautions were taken to ensure his security when arrested at Port Lincoln last week and lodged in the local gaol, but he contrived by almost super-human dexterity, while having breakfast in the cell yard, to surmount a Iflft wall in the short interlude between the visits of his warder and drop down on the other side to freedom. Digby’s liberty, however, was shortlived, for on the following night Mr. Talbot Jury, the licensee of the Northern Hotel, noticed a man crossing the yard of the hotel, and, recognising him as the escaped prisoner, closed with him. A desperate struggle ensued, Digby realising that his chance of escape w-as cut off if lie failed to get away, but in the end he was overpowered by Mr. Jury, who summoned the police, and Digby was lodged in the cells again. , OVER THE WALL AGAIN. But if Digby’s liberty had been shortlived so was his next confinement. To make sure of «im this time the gaol authorities kept a close watch on him whenever the, cell was opened, the warders having strict injunctions not to let him out of their sight. But an open cell was not requisite to a man of Digby’s resources. During the night he contrived, without attracting the notice of successive warders, to pick away the masonry at the side of his cell door, and, seizing a favourable opportunity

;when the footfalls of the warder were lat their maximum distance, he flung ■open the door, thus gaining a narrow ■ cell yard. He again managed to get ; over the 16ft wall and once again roamed the country. He was recaptured {several days later. Digby’s recent record is interesting. He had only been a few days in South I Australia in 1921 when he was arrested by detectives in connection with several robberies in the city. On that occasion he had made his way from .Victoria, having escaped from Pent- • ridge Gaol on July 11, when serving a i sentence on three charges. He had been j employed as a servant to the deputyI governor, and before escaping secured a (suit belong |; to that official. On the I charges of larceny in Adelaide, he was • sentenced to terms aggregating two 'years, and was removed to Yatala on ; the Victorian Police Department notifying the authorities there that he could I serve his sentences in South Australia. ANOTHER ESCAPE AND RECAPTURE. On October 1-9. 1921, Digby again adopted bjld measures to escape, it being found that lie and a man named McEntee had removed a bar from a l window of the tailoring department, and afterwards scaled the outer wall with the aid of a ladder. Attired in ‘civilian clothes which they had stolen ; from the prison, they had little difficulty in getting away from the precincts of the gaol. Nothing was known of their movements, but several days afterwards, two men, answering their description, were seen near Wild Horse : Plains.

; The stealing of suits of clothes and i articles of foodstuffs aroused the watch(fulness of the police, and about 5.30 a.m. on October 26, it was discovered that the motor garage of Vivian Lewis. jL’mited, had been broken open, and two i motor-cycles were missing. In a motor rar, two members of the force set along ! the road in search, and had only gone | a few miles along the road to Kadina, when they discovered one of the. cycles abandoned on the s-ide of the road. They continued the chase, and after covering about 10 miles and get tin" within sight of Bowmans, they observed the two men on the one motor-cycle. A side-on collision was purposely brought about, which threw the fugitives to the ground. McEntee (juickly surrendered, but Digby got up and ran away. He was fired on and hit in the thigh, but still ran on, and covered about a mile before being captured. On the charge of escaping from gaol ! Digby was awarded three years’ imprisonment. but was released on February 7 of this year on a warrant from the Governor, after having only served half or his allotted sentence. Nothing more was heard of him until lie was arrested at Port Lincoln, after having been employed as a cook for a railway gang on the Kimba railway line.

A cable from Adelaide, published the ‘other day. stated that Digby was shot by a policeman while making another lattempt tu escape. He died shortly afterwards.