QSR1854/4/5/20

Depositions of William Thompson, labourer of Biggleswade and Richard Todd, police constable of Biggleswade. In the case of William Illsley accused of stealing 41 pounds weight of lead.

26 September 1854

From: 1854 To: 1854

William Thompson: a labourer working for Mr Walter Parker, a builder at Biggleswade. About 3.30pm on 23 September he was walking down his masters premises looking for eggs and in turning over some straw he saw a quantity of lead chippings and suspected something as wrong. He gave the information to the clerk of the yard. There was a lane leading from a street in Biggleswade past her master’s premises down to the river. There was a fence between the lane and his master’s premises. The lead was close to the fence and the fence had a hole in which a person could have put their arm through to reach the wood. There was usually a quantity of lead chippings about his master’s premises but they were kept at a considerable distance from the place where had found them. The prisoner worked for his master. PC Richard Todd: on 23 September, from information received, he went to Mr Parker’s premises to where there was a quantity of lead. At 11 o’clock someone came down the lane adjoining the premises and stopped close to where he was hidden. The prisoner put his hand through the fence into the straw where the lead was. The prisoner went away and Todd jumped the fence and caught the prisoner. He took the prisoner to Mr Culshaw, the foreman, and as soon as he got Illsley into the house he said he knew nothing of the lead. He had not said a word to him at the time. There was 2 pounds weight of lead and was worth about 2 shillings. Statements of the accused: he knew nothing about it.

item

Ilsley, William,
Thompson, William,
Todd, Richard

BIGGLESWADE, stealing, lead