BRUTAL MURDER.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 464, 19 April 1890, Page 4

BRUTAL MURDER.

A NEW PLYMOUTH TRAGEDY. AN OLD MAN TOMAHAWKED. ARREST OF A MAORI ON SUSPICION. New Plymouth, April 14. A brutal and ferocious murder was committed in the Recreation Grounds on Friday, the victim being an old man named Stephen Maloney. The deceased was a discharged soldier, having served in the Crimea. He lived alone in a small cottage in the grounds, and was last seen alive on Friday at noon. He was missed on Friday night, and search made for him on Saturday afternoon, when his body was found lying in some fen* and scrub about 20 chains from his house.

Marks of violence were found on the body,, but were not at first considered to be of a, serious character, and there was little blood visible. A post mortem yesterday revealed that the deceased had been horribly murderedNine cuts were found on the head. Non© of them, however, had fractured the skull, but one had penetrated the brain. The windpipe had been squashed to atoms bysome blunt instrument. As there was no external cut but a severe concussion, the theory is that the murderer used the blunt end of a small tomahawk, inflicting repeated blows on the throat with it, which severed the windpipe, but no severe external wound was occasioned. Deceased was a native of Kerry, Ireland, and had been in this colony over thirty years. He was decrepit, and could not walk without a stick. Hia stick and hatwere found about six or seven yards furtherin the scrub. When the body was found it was noticed that one of the pockets had been turnedinside out, and deceased’s purse, empty,, was found near the body. The motive for ' the crime was, evidently, to obtain money. The police have arrested a native named Mitu Kai. who was liberated from gaol fourteen days ago, having served a sentence for housebreaking. Marks of blood were found on the man’s trousers, and he was seen in the locality on the day the murder was committed. Deceased told the keeper of the Recreation Grounds that a Maori he did not know had called at his house alone on Friday morning, and he had given him his breakfast. He also said the Maori told him he was employed doing some work in the Recreation Grounds. The keeper told deceased that the Maori’s statement was untrue, asnoMaori had been working in the grounds. The murder is supposed to have beets committed with deceased’s own hatchet, which bears marks of blood upon it. The deceased was a recipient of chari; table aid, and had no relations in the colony.