THE RUNANGA MURDER.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 November 1917, Page 4

THE RUNANGA MURDER.

EGGERS' MILITARY CAREER. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Christchurch, Last Night. It is stated by the Sun to" night (Jul when the main body of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force was in Wellington, a man named William Predirick Eg.gers enlisted from Westland. Eventually he was appointed "batman" tovLieu-tenant-Colonel Douglas McLean Stewart, officer commanding the Canterbury lai fantry Battalion. While in the force Wellington, Eggers absented himself from his quarters on several occftlloss, and excused his conduct to Colonel Stewart by stating that he had got tangled up with a woman. On October 10, 1914, [!'/',.'' a - v when the force sailed from Wellington, Eggers received permission to go ashore, and he never returned Ho left his belongings behind, including two revolvers.. Some months afterwards, is Egypt, Colonel Stewart received a letter from Eggers, who said he had [given himself vp to the military authorities m Wellington, and had served a term of imprisonment on Somes Island,' and eventually had been discharged from the forces as his health had broken down. He was now penniless. He wanted Colonel Stewart to return his revolver*, which, he said, were keepsakes. At the time of his arrest in Christ, church, Eggers possessed a military seri .vice registration card in the name of McMahon. It said his parents resided m Adelaide, and that .life came irom America. They were started to he of German extraction. It is not known ■here whether Eggers did actually giro himself up and suffer imprisonment os Somes Island.

DETECTIVE INfERyiEWED BY REPORTER HALL'S CONDITION BTII4/ SERIOUS, Greymoulh/Last Night. Detective-Sergeant Cpnnolly airiveft in Greymouth on evening, to patch up the evident' for the Crown in Hie charges, four in number, laid against Eggers, alias McMahoh. In a chat with a reporter, the detective Mid prisoner 1 was a dangerous man for the police to handle, as shown by his actions after arrest. At the police office he was par* ticularly alert and quick jn his movements, hut his tongue was absolutely, still when Connolly interviewed him after flndinjr the money at his lodgtngg, nnd told him that the notes were identifiable, connecting him with the murder and robbery. The detective further stated that prisoner -.was Aost expensive in his habits of "dress; his hat being a Stetson, which cost' perhaps a couple of guineas. Two photoglyphs of th« prisoner taken in Brisbane (one 1908), where enquiries havo been set on foot by the police with a vi<Sw to clearing up his history, were to' the interviewer. "The man always/had plenty of money to spend, though he neve* seemed to do any work." said the detective. "Do you think it possible that he had anything to do witfc the Kaiapoi murder?" The 'detective repßed: "Oh, I don't fhink so. "The murdered j man had a £lO note left on hii*, and Eggers would not have left th*f behind."

The prisoner .will probably not be brought to trial until Hall can give evi« dence, and that will not be for somo time, for his condition is still serious, though there are hopeful signs of imi provement. The doctors have an anxiou4 time with him.