CHINAMAN MURDERED

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 3820, 19 July 1928, Page 3

CHINAMAN MURDERED

+ GOLD DIGGINGS TRAGEDY. Dunedin, Last Night. Gasping that he had been shot three times Joe Shem, a Chinese, whose age is believed to be between forty-eight and fifty years, rushed out of his hut at the Kyeburn Diggings yesterday afternoon to where his mate was cutting wood and collapsed in the latter’s arms. Shem died this morning as the result of the murderous assault that was evidently committed upon him. From the details that have reached the police district headquarters it would appear that Shem’s companion, Sue Puc, had gone away to cut wood. A man arrived at their hut at 1 p.m. yesterday and was given a cup of tea. He then demanded money but there was no money in the house.

About 3.30 p.m. Shem came rushing after Pue and called out that he had been shot three times.

Sue at the time was working a - bout twenty chains from the hut and carried the wounded man back to the hut. Then in fear and trembling he stayed behind the closed door afraid to venture out in the dark.

I-Ie arrived at the Kyeburn hotel early this morning hearing news of the tragedy, having left the body of Shem in the hut,

Constable Fox, of Naseby and a doctor immediately proceeded to the scene arriving at the hut some time before noon. It was thought that Shem had then been dead four or five hours. \

There was a bullet in his right arm of .22 calibre, another in his throat, and the one that killed him entered below the left breast and passed through the stomach and ont through the left thigh. Kyeburn Diggings is an old golddigging settlement in Maniototo and is about 106 miles northwest of Dunedin in the heart of Central Otago.