POLICE SCANDAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 88, 12 April 1912, Page 6

POLICE SCANDAL.

AFFATRS IX BOURNEMOUTH

THREE CONSTABLES CONVICTED

At tho Assizes at Winchester Castle on February Bth, before Mr Justice Darling, remarkable revelations were made about the Bournemouth police scandals. Three young constables were sentenced to eighteen months' imprisonment for midnight robberies .from the shops it was their duty to 7 protect, and they all claimed that they had l>ccn led into wrong-doing by superior officers and older constables. William Whyman (26) and Reginald William Bowra (27) pleaded guilty, whilo Stanley Frederick Cozens (29), elected to tak ehis trial in order to bring the whole business before the public. Frederick A burrow (28) was acquitted. tin his locker at the police office wore found a silver snuff-box, a clock, a silver souviner spoon, some recklnices, and some boxes of chocolates. Some of the articles were idsiitiiied, but the evidence was slender, and Aburrow got the benefit of the doubt.

Cozens was then charged with breaking into the stores of Lipton, Ltd., Bournemouth, during the weekend, 26tr and 30th October, 1911, and stealing three hams and a quantity of tea. The Judge road to the jury a paper written by Cozens, in which appeared the following statement'.;—"l have been the dupe and tool of superior officers, men who served a number of years in the police force and'have now been discharged. I had only been in the force three months when I noticed certain members acting suspiciously on night duty. Sergeant came to me and said, 'Don't be afraid; if ever you want anything just leH; me know. There are ways and means of getting it.' Ho always carried skeleton keys and he offered me several. "Theio are several young policemen who have been taken into shops and other business establishments at night by sergeants, and robberies committed, skeleton keys being W;d in every instance. On one occasion 1 Was on night duty and Sergeant <said we wruld try the back doors together. He went into tho store, took out a tin of beef, some fancy "oap, and a dozen tins of blacking, and then relocked the door. A few days afterwards a lot of razors were missing from stores, and then 1 saw Sergeant off'tring razors for sale to lecruits."

Bowra, Whyman, and Cowns vtre then brought up to receive sentence. Whyman, in a written statement, said that he was of good character when he joined the force, and would have continued so had he not been s'tationed with dishonest men. /'What I have done is through 'being led away by older hands. When I was arrested I had in my box twenty-seven keys, most of them skeleton, given to me by a man called on to resign four ■veeks before I was arrested."

The Judge questioned Superintendent Hack.

How long have you been there? Seven years last September.

Have any of the men dismissed been there longer than you?—Xo. One of them was an inspector, and there were two sergeants and five constables?—Yes.

Is it contemplated to proceed against any of these others?—Evory inquiry has been made, but we cannot get sufficient evidence at present to justify it. On what ground were the olht-r men dismissed?—Their services were no longer required. Because of statements made by the men in the dock?—Exactly. Addressing the prisoners, the Judge said it was quite obvious that the course of ill-doing had been going on at Bournemouth for a very long time. "You may have been seduced by others, but that is no answer to the public, whose trust you have abused'. The public confided to you the charge of their houses and their goods when they were themselves asleep, and you took advantage of it to break into those houses and steal. The lives, liberties, and property of the people of this country are confided to a great extent to the police." He then passed sentence of eighteen months' imprisonment on each of the prisoners.