SHIFTING OF GIRL’S BODY

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 562, 15 January 1929, Page 1

SHIFTING OF GIRL’S BODY

Tangled Threads in Tamaki Mystery DID ELSIE WALKER CRAWL INTO SCRUB ? Did Elsie Walker crawl into the thick scrub of a deserted Tamaki quarry to die, or was her dead body thrown there by someone concerned in her death. On this question evidence was called at the inquest which was resumed this morning. In a thin piping voice a small eleven-year-old boy told how he found the body. His uncle described how it lay face downward in the scrub, with one arm flung partially forward. A tiny handkerchief saturated with blood was lying' nearby. That the body was removed before a careful examination was made is the opinion of the coroner, Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M.

Evidence as to the discovery of the ijody occupied most of the time at •Us morning's hearing. Mr. V. R. Meredith, Crown Prosecutor, is appearing for the police, Mr. E. H. Northcroft, for the Bayiy family and Mr. Mowbray, for the parents of the dead girl. MISSING MONEY When the inquiry resumed at 2.15 p.m., yesterday Mr. Northcroft said Mrs. Bayiy would like a further opportunity of examining Elsie Walker’s carments. The coroner, Mr. F. K. Hunt, granted the necessary permission, Audrie Bayiy, niece of the previous vitneas, stated that she arrived at her aunt's place at 4 p.m. on October 1. Witness had been staying at Rotorua, and had left there at about one o'clock. Mr. Paterson, the magistrate at Rotorua, travelled in the same car. The service car landed her at the bridge rate. Witness did not know Elsie Walker previously. Witness put her handbag in the spare bedroom off the dining room. Just before eiglil fclock that evening witness went intc he kitchen to get a glass of water, and there saw Elsie Walker. Elsie lold witness that she had beeu emptying the bucket. She also asked witness if she had met her sister Anne. Witness then returned to the billiard room, leaving Elsie in the kitchen. The household retired to bed at the same ume. Next morning witness was •told that Elsie had left the house, and was asked if any money had been taken. Seven £1 notes, a penny, and a halfoenny, had been taken. The money vas contained in a purse inside the hag Mr. Mowbray: Did you notice anything about the girl? Witness: I thought she was rather quiet, and didn’t speak much. She giggled a little when witness spoke to her. That might have been as a result of shyness. To Mr. Hunt: When she saw Elsie " >lker in the kitchen she was wearing a mauve dress and a pink apron. GARMENTS NOW IDENTIFIED Alter examining the girl’s garments, Mrs. Bayiy was recalled. Witness said the garments were Elsie Walker’s. They had been cut nbout by tho pathologist, and she had not recognised them before. When 'tie had seen them before they had ooked to be different, because they nd been sewn together roughly. The rannents witness had just examined nd been made by a machine, and ■™s clothing was usually made by mi None of the garments except two. nalch had been given to the police witness, had any marks on them ■ucept two articles of underclothing. Mr. Meredith, witness said that rough she had a sewing machine in ae house, Elsie never used it, because 'no was not an expert. However, she -Quid use it. Witness had told Detective Bicker■Ae that she was doubtful that the garments he had shown her were Elsie alker’s. She had said she did not Mognise the lace. She had been usgusted by the garments. She did aot sa f to the detective, “They were 't 6 garments because no garments 8 1 this house in that condition." The aa ,erial also did not look new. She 1 ®°t pointed out that what she , “Aoded over to the police was 'Mn. At the time she wus under e lm Pression that the stains on the raent were . evidences of a mule “Panion. she did not know until ■ s joty moment in the witnes -box T . that was not the case. I f ln ° mas Clifford Bayiy, aged 11, son previous witness, said he >o - u AV.Uker wash tile dishes ,-nighi she dlsappe- d. He went 0 the billiard room afterwards. He Ah« see Elsie again. He went to :ah 31 ia his room off the veran*hri He went down with Godfrey, Baw a light in the kitchen, and who ’ tht° the kitchen to investigate, “Bter **^?’ e< * t>y witness, who did not suttb ~ was not sure if Godfrey ato vi i out - Godfrey then looked les room . but did not say Mss bV he was in bed or not - Wit ‘ ar m j. tever seen Elsie drive the Whe k ncd know she could, dishe bad helped Elsie dry the qui et i! at bight, she had been very ttUethi 6 seeme d to be angry about atvnm! He had not seen or heard SirT Ut thu Placea othy v Teague, of Papa:>om it, had li y ed about a mile Elsie W'it ayly a house. She had met h«r hmi ker and tbe Eirl had been to fitter i twiee ' She saw Elsie about at Mbs. Mortou’s house Elsie asv^ 6 ?* eeks before she died, and e<l w iluess how she got there ’hen irahs S J t ? ld her in a car. Elsie htr that v. ed b er by the arm and told Mr. \ n V}P c °uld drive a car. k <? s b rN co n -.. 1 thought at the time she nS-the fact to me. j tte ikiu A. Renzy "’uiker. father of was theu called.

lie said his wife was still living and he had six children—three boys unci three girls. Witness thought he had told Elsie over the phone he would be coming up to Te Puke in October. She had never asked to bo taken away from the Bayly’s, and appeared quite contented and h ippy. She had said she had plenty of money. That was in May. He had given her a cheque for £3, but though she said she did not want it, he had made her take it. She had known two or three friends of witness's at Ruakokore, but she had no male friends that he knew of. They would have known at home if she had been corresponding with any male acquaintances. “Elsie could not drive a car and had no chance of driving a car when she was down at home, because there was not a single car in the district,” said witness. ' Mr. Northcroft: In your daughter’s letter she spoke quite kindly of Bill Bayly’s marriage, and of his future wife? Witness: Quite kindly. Mr. Northcroft: There was no trace l of ill feeling? Witness: Absolutely none. DESERTED CAR FOUND Christina Anderson, Station Road, Papatoetoe, said she remembered seeing a car standing outside her gate on the morning of Tuesday, October 2. It was a blue cur and she first saw it at 10 minutes to 9. She had not looked in that direction before that time and it may have been there a long time. The car remained there all day Tuesday and was taken away by the police on Wednesday. Constable Malone, of Papatoetoe, said on Wednesday, October 3, he was informed a car had been standing in Station Road for a day. He investigated and found it was a blue Whippet car, numbered 27-487. There was a spare tyre in the back seat of the car. It had been punctured. A jack was on the floor of the car. He did not notice any other tools on the floor of the car. There was no sign of anything unusual, though the car was dusty as ! if a long distance had been covered. | All the curtains were up. After wit- ; ness had had it driven down to But- | ler’s garage by Mr. Butler, he had ! informed the head police station. Head office told witness that the Hamilton police had reported the car missing, but not that a girl was missing as well. This would be at 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday morning. Witness did not get notice that the girl was missing until the body was found on October 6. The car was still in the garage then. He knew then that the girl who was missing came from the' same place as the car. Though witness had scoured the district for news about the movements of the car he could get no light on it. He did not inquire until he received word on the Saturday the girl was missing. Witness received directions to prosecute inquiries from his sergeant at Otahuhu. He directed his report to Otahuhu about a week or a fortnight afterwards. The Court adjourned at 4.40 p.m. until 10 o’clock to-day. (The above evidence was published in the late editions of yesterday’s Sun.) FINDING THE BODY Dr. F. Patrick Spencer, a medical officer at the Auckland Hospital, was the first witness called this morning. He stated that on October 5 he saw the body of Elsie Walker. Witness was not sent for, but just happeued to be there with Dr. Noakes. The body was undressed at the time. Witness had a casual glance, and told the police that he thought the girl had been dead three or four days. There were marks on the jaw, which he thought might have been caused by the bites of some animal. He made only a superficial examination. To Mr. Hunt: There were tw r o police officers present. Roger Butler, motor garage proprietor at Papatoetoer gave evidence regarding the Whippet motor-car which he removed from fetation Road. Papatoetoe, to his garage. He said that in the back of the car was a spare tyre. He did not make a minute examination of the car, but one of the boys dipped a ruler into the ben sine tank. As far as he could remember, there was about an lnch 0^. be “ f zine in it. The vacuum tank, of course would be full. Jhere were no mechanical defects about the cat. which started promptly. tlle car To Mr Northcroft: While toe cai was in the shop he mendea the punc- j ■»“ """ Ca Au ‘boV: named James MOn ' i3 io!d o how°he found ie body of mure, told ho " “X * evcn ins of Oeto Elsie h ‘ lul ew of a "bunny's j ' in a p-ddpek. and went across j

to it. Dick Pve, who was about the same age as he, was with him, and as they were returning home they saw a girl’s feet sticking out of the scrub in a quarry. At first he thought she was asleep. She was lying face down. Witness told hjs uncle, Mr. Carter. His uncle returned with him to the spot. Stephen Walter Carter, a Public Works employee residing at St. Heliers Bay Road, Panmure, and the uncle of the previous witness, said he was informed of the discovery of the girl’s body at about seven o’clock on the evening of October 5. He returned with the boys to the scoria paddock about a mile away and saw the body. It was then about twenty past seven, and quite dark. He could see the girl’s shoes and about six inches of the legs sticking out of a bush. The body was lying face down, lie called, but got no response. He struck a match, and seeing that there was no movement, went for the police. BLOODSTAINED HANDKERCHIEF Her knees were bent up and the body was lying slightly on its left side. The left arm was slightly extended in front, the right arm placed palm downward behind the body, and the head was lying in a small hollow. A small handkerchief, with bloodstains on it, was lying a few feet away. The bushes were not broken, and it would seem that the body had been thrown there and not placed in that position. The herbage was quite close to the body and was not broken down, as might have been the case if there had been a struggle. A demonstration was then given on the courtroom floor with the aid of the boy Thompson to show how the body was lying when found. When the constable arrived they made an examination by the aid of a torch. They lifted the girl up and had a look at her face. It had a big hole in the side. The body was then lowered to its former position, only in doing so the left arm came back to the side. The constable theu went away to telephone the detective office and they returned to the body. When the body was removed he noticed no blood on the face, but did so later at the morgue. The girl was dressed in a boy’s overcoat fastened at the second button. It was then noticed that the little handkerchief was covered Jn blood. The body was immediately taken to the morgue, where witness waited until the detectives arrived. The detectives found two letters and a man's handkerchief in the pocket of the coat. The clothing was then removed. Mr. Hunt: Did they take notes? Witness: Yes. (Continued on Page 11.)