I THREAT TO SHOOT

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIII, Issue 121, 25 May 1942, Page 6

I THREAT TO SHOOT

MAORI WITH SHOT GUN

SEQUEL TO A FIGHT

WHANGAREI, this day I "The seriousness of this case cannot be stressed too strongly. We know what occurred recently on the West Coast, and we are quite sure than Maunsell would have carried out his intention of shooting at the police if an attempt had been made to arrest him while he had a shot gun in his possession." These comments were made in the Whangarei Court to-day by DetectiveSergeant J. B. Finlay in prosecuting aganst Joseph or Rapata Maunsell, whpm he stated had frankly told the police that he f"lly intended firing at them if they came in his direction. After talking with relatives he had decided to surrender himself. Maunsell pleaded guilty to charges °[ being a rogue and vagabond in that he was armed with a gun with felonious intent, carrying a shot gun without lawful, proper or sufficient excuse, and using obscene language. On the first charge he was sentenced to three months' imprisonment with hard labour, and on the others he was convicted and discharged. Maunsell. a labourer at the Moerewa freezing works, recently had a fight with another native named Dave Wiki, Detective-Sergeant Finlay stated. On the night of May 19 Maunsell obtained possession of a shotgun and at 3 a.m. went to the hut occupied by Wiki and other natives. He put his hand through a broken pane of glass and turned on the electric light, but knocked down a board, awakening the occupants. A few minutes later a report from a shotgun was heard close to the huts.

Constable Muir, of Kawakawa. wisely thought it inadvisable to start a search for Maunsell, knowing he was armed, before dawn. On May 22, at Ngapipito, Mrs. Dodd and her sister-in-law were awakened by an intruder in their house. When no reply was received to an inquiry, Mrs. Dodd told her sister-in-law to throw a piece of iron at the unknown visitor. The intruder threatened to shoot if anything were thrown at him and said he had come only for cartridges. Ordered out, he left immediately. With Detective G. S. Miller of Whangarei, Constable Muir later returned to Ngapipito and thev were informed that Maunsell's relatives had seen the accused that morning and had persuaded him to surrender himself. The police went to Otiria. where they intercepted Maunsell •and arrested him.

Maunsell admitted that he went to the hut with the shotgun to give his "two debtors" a fright. He stated that the gun was loaded after he had left, and while it was being handled it had accidentally discharged. He then decided to take to the bush, and shoot any police who attempted to arrest him, and commit suicide before the cartridges were exhausted. Detective-Sergeant Finlay said he had 18 cartridges. He spent the day time and three nights out of four in the bush.

On the day before the arrest of Maunsell, said Constable Muir, some natives passed him within a chain. Accused frankly stated at this stage that he had his gun loaded and he fully intended to fire at them if they came in his direction. He said it was fortunate that they had passed without seeing him.

Detective-Sergeant Finlay said the ammunition was stolen from a cottage which was broken into at Moerewa on May 19, but Maunsell denied the offence.

The magistrate, Mr. Raymond Ferner, sentenced Maunsell to three months' hard labour, to be followed by 12 months' reformative detention.