BOMB POSSESSOR

Hokitika Guardian, 7 June 1932, Page 3

BOMB POSSESSOR

\ CASE HEARD AT AUCKLAND

RUSSIAN SEAMAN CHARGED.

(By 'J'elegruph —ter Brett Association)

AUCKLAND, June 6

Tlie Russian seaman, George Sergiff, aged 42, who was arrested on May 19, was charged in the Police Court to-day with knowingly possessing a bemb with intent to commit a crime, and with procuring explosives without lawful right.

Detective Packman said that accused was under observation for several days prior to bis arrest. When accosted on May 19, lie was questioned about associating with Communists, but, he denied having been seen a-t meetings.

When arrested and taken to the police station, accused was found to have ah improvised bomb, two gelignite and two'detonators. bomb did not have gelignite in it but. could have been assembled, in a few seconds for use. When , asked for an ,explanation accused said that he was going to blow up fish and sell them to the market. Later, lie said that be did not sell the fish but gave them to friends. He got the gelignite from the Hikurangi mines a long while ago, although he had never worked there. Accused told them that lie was a Russian, and that he came to New Zealand twelve years ago and settled in Lyttelton. He was a .seaman and signed off his ship, the- Karet-u, in April, anel after working for eight months, he said lie needed a spell. His' room in tile Sailors’ Home was searched and a fully loaded bomb was found, also a, piece of piping and a grease cap, similar tQ the bomb .found on accused. This, filled with a sulphur , Ip.rm’ula for explosives was alsofound. Later in the same .evening, accused was confronted with pieces of doping which had been found in a vacgjit section in Hobson Street,. wrapped.lin; a newspaper, and covered with a sack. Each piece had wooden plugs, similai to that of the loaded .bomb found in accused’s room. Accused said that lie got one piece of piping from a mail at the Trades’ Hall, and when asked "’by he said “there were a lot of suggestions made to me,” lie would not sav what they were. Asked if there were others implicated he srid: “I will take all the responsibility.” . Witness said that the piping was found behind a hoarding on the vacant ; section. , A. tin full of slugs, made ■ from topfj -of leadheaded nails, was also found, but accused had denied that anything found on the section was. his. .

ACCUSED COMMITTED FOR TRIAL

EXPERTS ON THE EXPLOSIVES

AUCKLAND, June 6

■ At the trial of Sprgiff, Captain J. H. ■Cliffton, of .the New Zealand Staff .Corps, and Adjutant of the First Field Company of Engineers, and .attached to the Northern Command,, said that he had -examined several explosives in charge of Detective Nalder at the Defective- Office. The bomb found in the accused’s room consisted of a piee« >1 water piping, seven inches in lentrthand iotoe and n-half inches in diametei-. affixed with a -wooden flag at ea«-h erd -Tt contained a plug and a half of ge!ignite, which was H nifro glycerine explosive. A commercial type <’f detonator with an 8-second fuse was attached to the gelignite. The detonator was correctly inserted in the ge'ignite. .and portion of the fiise came through a slot cut in the wooden plug. The charge was clamped down with bro" - n paper.- The effect of such a bomb would be ' identical with that ot a Mills bomb, and the metal nature ol the casing would give a fairly heavy destructive effect .on detonation.

Referring to the bomb found on Sergiff. witness said that it contained about half a plug of gelignite. It would not have the same effect as the other bomb, as it was made out of a small grea'e cap. Concerning other larger' pieces of piping two and a-haff inches in diameter, Captain Cliffton said that, by the appearanc e of the plugs fitted, it was the same type of work as that oerfonnod in making the bomb found in Sergiff’s room. ' •

Chas. A. Campbell, of Noble’s 'Lxplosivos, Ltd., stated that he had examined •• several pieces <>l gelignite found bv- the.nolice, and ibe deposed to the deadly effects of it if it exploded in a bomb thrown among a crowd or into a building. A pound of go 1 ignite would lift about two and n-liall tons. There were ten plugs of gelignite in a pound, ami the quantity produced by the police would probably amount to half a plug. K. R. Griffin, Government Analyst, was a'so examined as to the etleet of explosives, and be said (be focmula produced was that of gelignite. The accused was committed for trial.