THE WERNHER JEWELS

Hokitika Guardian, 19 December 1924, Page 3

THE WERNHER JEWELS

THE MYSTERY EXPLAINED. AUBTBALIAN AND K Z. CAULK ASSOCIATION LONDON, Dec. 21. The mystery regarding the loss and subsequent return of the Wernher jewellery deepens. Scotland Yard now admits that the property is in safe keeping, and is not damaged, but maintains strict secrecy with reference to tho ...iithod of its recovery. It is known, however, that the officers in charge of the investigations obtained romarkable information a. few weeks after the theft, of which only a few oificers were made aware, the others continuing their investigations. Tho “ Evening Standard ” declares the first development leading to the return of the property was tho receipt of a telephone enquiry whether the £SOOO reward offered lor tho return of tho jewellery could possibly be increas. cd to £IO,OOO. Scotland Yard was immediately informed of the enquiry, but continued to draw the veil over their next steps, jpuly admitting• eventually that the stolen treasures were regained intact.

No attempt had been made |< ( remove a. jingle diamond, emerald or ruby from the priceless figures wherein they lire studded. The “Central News” gives the following explanation of the theft and tbo return of the jewellery, which it de- • scribes as tlie most romantic in tITo lus- , tory of modern crime. A wealthy American jewellery collector arrived in England during April, and inspected every collection in England and Scotland. He was allowed to visit the Wernher collection at Bath House at least a dozen times, and apparently he became 1 imbued with covetousness, and realising his hopelessness at inducing Lady Ludlow to sell, lie returned to America, hired three skilled New York burglars to come and steal the collection. The trio arrived in London on the sth of Jhnc and were allowed to inspect the collection ns connoisseurs, thus gaining valuable knowledge of tho approaches to Hath House. It is now known that when the trio stole the jeweller on the lltli of June they spent at least an hour in the house nnd removed the property inside a largo cushion. They then took the swng to France in a private yacht and ‘reached New York from Cherbourg. They placed the'property in a New Y T o rk safe deposit before they could complete the contract by-delivery to their employer. The latter died on the dnv o f their arrival in New York and owing to the difficulties in the disposal of the collection .it became valueless to the cracksmen. - Ultimately through lawyers in New York nnd London the cracksmen obtained a £5,000 reward for the safe return of the jewels. It is believed % trio received £IOOO in tulvnnce from tho eccentric collector nnd were to have received fifty thousand when the collection was delivered.