Attempted Gaol-Breaking.

Manawatu Herald, 18 October 1902, Page 2

Attempted Gaol-Breaking.

CUNNING DEVICES TO ELUDE

DETECTION

Another determined but unsuccessful attempt to break out of Lyttelton Gaol was made la-t night, the prisoners concerned being Michael Power, Charles Watson, Roderick McKenzie and James Burns.

Shortly before midnight Waston, who occupied a ceil in the north wing, called out that he wanted a warder. Warder Parker, who was on duty m the yard, went towards his cell, but on entering the north wing he heard a noise, apparently in the yard. He at once ran back, and saw a man run across in front of the lower range of cells in the south wing and break the padlock on the door of the cell occupied by Barns. The warder promptly covered the man with his revolver, and rang the alarm bell.

Mr Cleary, the gaoler, and half a dozen officers were quickly on the spot, and the man, who proved to be Power, was seized. Search was made for skeleton keys, which he must have used in getting out of his cell, and one for opening the coll door and another for opening the gate were discovered in McKenzie’s cell. A piece of iron, with which Power broke the padlock on the door of Burns’s coll, and a skeleton key., with which ho had unfastened that of his own, were afterwards picked up in a recess near Burns’s coll, where he must have thrown thorn on being detected. Great cunning and careful preparation were manifested in tbe manner in which Power contrived to, liberate himself. In the door of the cell is a small trap door, fastened on the outside by an iron bar being placed across it, and hold in position by a staple and an iron pin at each end One of those pins was found to have been removed and replaced by a “ dummy ” of wax, shaped and coloured so as to exactly re liable five g.muins article. A blow or aha M push on the inside of tin t-ap broke the sham pin an ! c.ui khl tl»s bar to swing and tin t'-ip-door to la!!. A piece of ii • a 3. coloured like iron, was attached to the bar, perhaps with the object of rendering its fall noiseless.

Power was sentenced to eighteen months for theft and three months for perjury at Wellington in Api, la<t. McKenzie is serving seven

years for indecent assault at Masterton. Watson, an ex-Burnh im boy, is serving two years for breaking and entering at Dunedin, and Burns is undergoing a sentence of f urtcen years for attempted robbery under arms at Wanganui.

The prisoners will be brought before the Visiting Justices. Meantime they have been placed in separate confinement.