TO BREAK GAOL

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19829, 2 May 1927, Page 3

TO BREAK GAOL

A FUTILE ATTEMPT SUSPICIOUS WARDERS ON THE ALERT SYDNEY, April 26. One of the most daring, though unsuccessful attempts to escape from Bathurst Gaol has just been disclosed. Had it been successful, three of the most desperate criminals in the gaol would have escaped. It was only by the vigilance of the gaol staff that the prisoners, as well as their accomplices outside, were unable, to achieve their object. Three of the most desperate longsentence prisoners in the gaol had been planning for months to escape, though they wore unaware that their actions during the past few weeks had aroused the suspicion of the authorities. The prisoners’ plan was to secure the key of a cell, and after one had opened the cell door he was to liberate the other two, who occupied cells in the vicinity. Then one was to attract the attention of the warder on duty, and while the officer was engaged the other two prisoners planned to push him inside the cell and overpower and effectively silence him.

The next step was to get outside the. gaol walls, and this could have been accomplished by using the keys taken from the warder and after escaping from the gaol wing scaling the outside wall. Here a waiting motor car arranged for by a prisoner who had rcrceently been released, was to carry tho escapees off. Everything Went Wrong. Saturday night was the time at. which the prisoners were to make the final move. They did so, but the authorities were on the alert, and thus everything went wrong, as far as the would-be escapees were concerned. Just as the gaol clock chimed 8 o’clock a prisoner knocked on his coll door and attracted the wardfer’s attention. The officer, in responding to the knock, noticed a key in the lock of an adjoining cell. It had been inserted in ingenious fashion. A piece of strong wire, with the key attached, had been passed under the cell door. The wire haids been bent in such a way that after being forced beneath tho opening at the bottom of the door tho key attached could be inserted in the lock. Certainly it must have taken a considerable time for this to be accomplished, but when it was the prisoner found that he could not get sufficient leverage to turn the key in the lock. However, the warder noticed the wire being worked violently, and it was evident that the occupant of the cell was going his hardest to turn the key. Of course, that ended the business, for the warder was wide awake Then, but it is probable that it would only have been a matter of minutes before the prisoner would have opened the door. The plotters little dreamed that their plans were already known to the authorities, so that their chances of escape were hopeless even had the cell door been opened.

Adequately Punished The key was an old one, and had apparently been in possession of the prisoner for some time. How he secured it is not known. Steps had also been taken to deal with accomplices of the prisoners outside. At about 7.30 p.m. several members of the Bathurst police force secreted themselves at various points outside the gaol. Shortly after 8 o’clock, it is stated, a motor ear without a number or a tail-light was noticed coming along tho road, but all efforts to stop it failed, and the driver accelerated, and as the car was a particularly fast one, it soon disappeared out of sight. Further, it is stated several shots were fired by the warders on the watch in the gaol grounds at persons who were said to be approaching the gaol. As soon as the matter was reported to tho Comptroller-General (Mr Steele), he hurried into the affair. As a result, the three prisoners concerned were removed to another gaol. Mr Scobie, S.M., of Bathurst, also held an investigation, and it is understood the three prisoners were adequately punished.