Bedfordshire Archives Service Catalogue
  • Reference
    QSR1890/1/5/3
  • Title
    Depositions of Edward Whitbread, provision merchant's assistant of Toddington and William Chamberlain, detective officer of Luton. In the case of David Clarke accused of stealing 5 pounds weight of bacon.
  • Date free text
    4 December 1890
  • Production date
    From: 1889 To: 1890
  • Scope and Content
    Edward Whitbread: an assistant to Edward Charles Denton a provision merchant. On 30 November he was in charge of his master’s stall about 7.45pm. The prisoner came up and asked the price of several pieces of bacon and said he would wait until his wife came. The prisoner was around the stall a long time. As he was serving another customer he missed the defendant and on turning round he saw Detective Chamberlain had him in custody. The bacon fell from under the prisoners coat and Whitbread picked it up. It was no more than 5 yards from the stall. The bacon weighed 5lbs and was worth 3 shillings. He was able to identify it as a piece which had been on the stall a few minutes before. William Chamberlain: detective officer with the Luton Borough Police Force. He had been on duty in the market and saw the prisoner standing in a suspicious manner against the prosecutors stall. The prisoner was smoking and leaning forward towards the bacon on the end of the stall. He watched the prisoner for about 10 minutes and when Whitbread was busy serving other customers, the prisoner suddenly left but as he did so he took a piece of bacon and put it under his coat. About 4 yards from the stall he caught Clarke and asked him what he was doing. Clarke immediately dropped the bacon from under his coat and said if he had done anything wrong they should send for a policeman to lock him up. Whitbread picked up the bacon. With the assistance of PC Butcher he took the prisoner to the police office and charged him. In reply the prisoner swore and said he knew nothing of the bacon. On searching the prisoner they found 16s 11d. Statement of the accused: he was not guilty.
  • Reference
  • Level of description
    item
Hierarchy browser