The Proceedings of the Old Bailey

 

206.   EDWARD TOOMEY (20) , Burglary in the dwelling-house of   Conrad Straub, and stealing watches, chains, and other articles, his property.

MR. BROXHOLME Prosecuted.

  CONRAD STRAUB . I am a jeweller, of 70, High Street, Lee—on 17th December I shut up my shop and went to bed about 11.30, leaving everything secure—I was the last person up—about 1.30 my bell rang; I went downstairs and found my window shutters broken and some of my jewellery on the pavement outside and some gone altogether—I have lost about 7l. 10s.—this is some that we picked up in the road when I came back from the station, and some that Sergeant Hoad found.

  SAMUEL SMITH . I am a cabdriver—about 1.30 on this Sunday morning I heard a smash—I went up to the prosecutor's place and saw the window broken—about two minutes afterwards I saw three men under a lamppost about 60 yards from the shop—I called out to them and they ran off as fast as they could—I do not recognise the prisoner, but he is about the same height as one of the men—I rang the prosecutor's bell.

  WILLIAM DISH . I am timekeeper on board the Thames Police ship—I found this jewellery in Blackwall Lane, near the timekeeper's gate, about two miles from where the robbery was committed—I do not know where the prisoner lives.

  JOHN HOAD (Police Sergeant R 157). about 3 a.m. on the 19th I was on duty in Marsh Lane, East Greenwich—I saw the prisoner coming from the direction of the prosecutor's house towards the Marshes—I asked him where he was going, he said "lam going home"—I said "Where do you live?"—he said "6, West Terrace"—I put my hand in his breast-pocket and found a number of these rings on a piece of wire—I went with him to West Terrace and then to Ordnance Road—he showed me a house where he said he lived; I knocked at the door, a woman put her head out of the window, I asked her if she had any lodgers; the prisoner said "It is Toomey, Mrs. North, don't you, know me?"—she said "No I don't"—I took him in custody—I searched him at the station and found these rings on him.

  CONRAD STRAUB (Re-examined). I identify these.

  HENRY PHILLIPS (Police Inspector R). After the prisoner was committed for trial he wrote a letter for me to go and see him—authority was given me from the Home Office—I cautioned him that whatever statement he made would probably be used against him; he said he did not mind, he wanted me to take the truth of it and lay it before the Court. (This stated that he met two men, She a and Galloway, in a public-house, who asked him to go with them to commit a burglary at this shop; that he left them and went home, but afterwards met them, and that they said they had broken into

the shop and asked him to hold the jewellery, and that they put it into a handkerchief which he brought away with him.

The prisoner stated that he would plead guilty to receiving the things.

GUILTY He then PLEADED GUILTY** to a conviction of felony at this

Court in December, 1885.— Five Years' Penal Servitude.