LIVERPOOL TRAGEDY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 75, Issue 140, 16 June 1932, Page 7

LIVERPOOL TRAGEDY

YOUNG COUPLE'S DEATH TRIAL OF WILLIAM MOXLEY LONG EMOTIONAL STATEMENT FORMER INJURY BLAMED By Telegraph—Press Association—Cop? right Received June .15, 9.57 p.m. SYDNEY, June 15. The trial is proceeding in the criminal Court of William Moxley, charged with murdering the young couple, Mr Frank Wilkinson and Miss Dorothy Denzel. Moxley, in a long, emotional state ment, declared his innocence. He said that he had no occasion to kill anyone, as he was not in need of money, but since he had been shot in the head hi* had been a changed man and had not been responsible for his action on the night of the tragedy. “1 know nothing about the shooting of these young people and I don’t think anybody docs,” he said. The hearing was adjourned. A Sydney message, published on April 10, stated that Frank Wilkinson, aged 26, and Dorothy Denzel, aged 21, went for a motor drive from the latter’s Burwood home on the evening of April 5, and did not return, though the car was found later in the garage with the engine partly dismantled. It was unknown who took the car to the place. An intensive search and widespread inquiries resulted in confirmation of fears that they met with foul play. On April 11 the mysterious disappearance of the couple was partly solved by the discovery of the body of Wilkinson, partly buried near the old German internment camp at Liverpool, 20 miles south of Sydney. A human hand protruding above the earth led to the discovery of the victim. It was stated that the crime was likely to be one of the most sensational in the history of the State. Mr Wilkinson’s parents are wealthy and Miss Denzel was the winner of a beauty competition. Wilkinson, who was a compositor, had a large circle of girl and boy pals. Girl’s Body Found On April 12 a message reported that the body of Miss Denzel had been found in a shallow grave, two miles from the spot where Wilkinson was discovered. Two soldiers from the Remound Depot were passing on horseback when one of the animals shield at a freshly disturbed mound of earth among the scrub. The police were summoned and found the girl’s body after a minimum of digging. Two hundred police were engaged on the crime. The battered body of Dorothy Denzel was lifted from its shallow grave in the bush. The police had kept a vigil overnight, the object being to allow experts to obtain all available evidence by daylight likely to afford clues to the murder. It was quickly evident that the girl had met the same terrible fate as her male companion. Her features were practically obliterated, she having been shot at close range with a shotgun. The body was practically naked, except for a woollen pullover. A piece of dress was drawn tightly round her neck. The remainder of her clothing was missing. As in the case of Wilkinson, her hands were tied behind her back with strips of a rug. The police were of opinion that the girl was brutally murdered within 10 feet of her grave, blood stains indicating the position where she fell. Owing to heavy rain since the crime was committed, all footprints had been obliterated. One of the girl’s shoes was found in the grave and one of her stockings on the way leading to the grave. Twenty feet away from the spot the police found pellets of shot and portions of human skull.