Bedfordshire Archives Service Catalogue
  • Reference
    QSR1842/1/5/50/a
  • Title
    Depositions and examination - Christopher Kibble
  • Date free text
    29 December 1841
  • Production date
    From: 1841 To: 1842
  • Scope and Content
    John Tack, shepherd to Joseph Cotchin - on 1 December he left 33 sheep safe in a field in Leighton Buzzard parish. Next morning one ewe was missing. He saw a place in the hedge where it had been carried through, with the footmarks of two men. He tracked them into another field where there were marks of a sheep having been killed, and into another field where they found a sheep skin - the skin of the sheep that was lost. They tracked the marks into the road leading to Billington from Leighton and lost them there. They found them again in the garden of John Geeves of Great Billington. Kibble is his son-in-law and lives with him. He saw the meat found in the garden patterned to the skin and it fitted. His master and his brother Thomas Cotchin were with him. Thomas Cotchin - he is a farmer in Leighton Buzzard parish and brother of the prosecutor. On the 2 December he was with Tack and tracked the footmarks as he stated. Before they went to Geeve's house he went to Kibble who was at work in Mr Woodman's barn. He asked Kibble to show his shoes and he did so. The shoes fitted one set of the footmarks. He asked where Kibble lived and he said at Geeves's his father in law. Kibble said nothing else at all. He then went to Geeves's. Geeves was in the house sitting by the fire ill. He searched the house but found nothing. Afterwards he searched the garden and found a bag with 2 legs of 2 loins of mutton in it. The mutton fitted with the sheep skin found in the field. He went back to look for Kibble and he was gone. Kibble has the same shoes on now but with more nails in the heel. James Sherwood, constable of Leighton - from information he received he went after Kibble to Edgecot near Bicester on Monday last. He found Kibble in bed in his father's house. He asked Kibble's mother if he was there and she said no. He was looking in a back room and she tried to hide a pair of shoes he thought were Kibble's. Then he went upstairs and found Kibble in bed half dressed. He told Kibble he wanted him about Mr Cotchin's sheep. Kibble was all in a tremble and very much confused. Christopher Kibble - "I don't know nothing about it. That's all I have to say."
  • Level of description
    item
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