QSR1842/1/5/49/b

Depositions - Jesse Sinfield charged with stealing a sheep from Joseph Freeman

27 December 1841

From: 1841 To: 1842

John Tutte of Dunstable, police constable - on Friday afternoon when he took Sinfield into custody he took him into a public house and searched him. Sinfield had a knife and a string made with a noose and knots apparently for catching sheep. It had some blood on it but appears to have been washed. Joseph Short - he lived at Chalk Hill in the parish of Houghton near the prisoner. Sinfield came to his brother's house a week ago last night, said he intended to go and fetch one of Michael Cook's sheep and asked him to go with him. He said he would have nothing to do with it. He did not see Sinfield again until Friday. He asked if Sinfield had fetched the sheep he had talked about - he said yes. Sinfield said he fetched it away while the folks were in meeting, ran it down as far as Mr Barnard's Nucketts and killed it there. He went and told Abel the constable. He went to the place with Mr Armstrong and they found the skin where Sinfield said it was, in the ditch opposite the trees. Sinfield had a string with him on the Sunday, very much like the one now produced.

item

Sinfield, Jesse,
Short, Joseph,
Freeman, Joseph,
Abel, Joseph,
Cook, Michael,
Armstrong, George

stealing animals, sheep, police constable, HOUGHTON REGIS, Chalk Hill