SYDNEY PARK PROWLEDS

Hokitika Guardian, 2 March 1921, Page 1

SYDNEY PARK PROWLEDS

IKIW A CONSTABLE WAS MURDERED. (SYDNEY, February 15. Sensational evidence was given in regard to park prowlers at an inquest i ,;n----!corning the death of Constable Wingas! who was shot while chasing n bagsnnteber in one of the parks. Wolgast was a very popular constable and athlete. Jt was reported that “touting” (spying upon lovers and probably blackmailing them) and thieving were prevalent in the great Centennial Park, and Wolgast was placed there on night duty. One night a man named Kennedy and a girl lVe »e | sitting in the park when two men rushed past them, and one. as lie ran. snatched up the girl's hag. Kennedy sprang up> and chased the man w itti the bag, shouting loudly as lie did. He had gone some distance when Constable* Wolgast sprang out of the bushes and went after the thief. He was gaining rapidly on him, when the thief turned and fired a revolver at him. The constable fell, fatally shot. Kennedy g<u tlie constable’s revolver. <Tml took up the chase, firing three shots, hut the thief escaped into the hushes. To shoot a man for the sake of a hag. and such a man as Wolgast, aroused the Sydney police to a pitch of fury seldom equalled. Every individual constable swore that he would not rest until mis ; most contemptible of murderers was . found. It seemed a hopeless task, . though, for no one had clearly seen the murderer. Tlie description circulated would have, fitted ten thousand men. But the police set determinedly to wefk., Thejv raked lover the underworld until'every crook was “on the jump,” and they put the “third de- ! gree” on to hundreds of suspects— and they got nothing. But the detectives bad a. theory. This man they pointed out, had a mate. They were park ! touts—the lowest and most eontempt- | ible of all criminals—and there was no honour among them. “Make the reward high enough,” they said. and the- mate will give the murderer aw tv/’ They started with a reward of W’- O land gradually increased it. When 'l.e reward was at C7OO certain informajtion earn* to hand, and an arrest was made. The police are quite satimed 'they have got the murderer. He was present, in custody at the inquest when 'a number of park tents w'er© brought up by the police to give evidence. All testified that the prisoner, known as “Jewev,” was a habitual park prowler, arid two asserted that on the night in 'question he stole the bag and shot the ,-onsta'ble. I A labourer called EHicombe gave remarkable evidence. He said that Jewev eturied a revolver, and had sworn ho ' would shoot if followed. Asked how ’ many of them ther© were in this Centennial Park regiment' of prowlers, 1 Fillicombe said about 100, divided into ‘ day-aiders and night-workers. ‘May I 5 take it that this is a lucrative- business v ’ 1 —Oh, T don’t know. If I see a bag T 1 take it. “How long is it since you ' went to the Park?—About four or five ; vearß .» “What would your total senfences for, these nefarious practices 3 amount to?—About two years, the