ENGLISH MAIL

Hokitika Guardian, 10 November 1927, Page 2

ENGLISH MAIL

STOLEN IN TRANSIT. (By Telegraph—Per Press Association. AUCKLAND. Nov. 9. A bag of English mail which reached Auckland ou Tuesday was found to have been cut open and a number of packages, some of considerable value stolen.

The hag was ono of a consignment of 321 bags of the English Eastern and Australian mail brought" to Auckland from Sydney by the Union Company's steamer Maranin. the English mail having reached Australia by the Suck route. The theft was carried out in such a manner that it was not ap;.*irent until tho hag reached its final destination. Leaving the seals and fastening intact the thief had cut a

long slit near the month of the bag and then abstracted the contents through the opening. The slit was hidden in the folds of the neck of the hag in such a way that it would pass unnoticed unless the bag were subjected to a minute examination.

The bag contained the London to Auckland mail including a smaller hag of registered matter.

The robbery was not discovered until the bag was opened in the mail room at the Chief Post Office. It was then seen that the contents of some packages had been abstracted, and the contents of others, as well as addressed empty covers, were lying loose at the bottom. Tho contents of two packages of -a valuable nature were stolen hv the thieves, but tho postal officials are reticent as to what these packages contained.. The owners of some of the pillaged packages are known by the addresses on the covers, hut it is probable that a number of packages were taken by the thieves intact. It will he a long time Indore it is known what number of packages the bags originally contained. Ti it- thought that the robbery took place on the high seas while the mail was in transit between England and Auckland. Exactly where, however. <‘s problematical, because of the number of times the mail had to he handled timing the different stages of the journey. "Tho thief or thieves possibly had some inside- knowledge when they picked out and cut open a hag tlpt contained another one with registered matter. There was nothing on the outside of the bag to indicate what its contents were.