QSR1862/4/5/2

Depositions of George Strange, draper of Luton. Edwin Strange, draper of Luton. Mary Young of Luton. George Turton, pawnbroker's assistant of Luton. Richard Lambert, police constable of Luton and Christopher Ludwig, police constable of Luton. In the case of Winifred Young accused of stealing 4 coats.

28 July 1862

From: 1862 To: 1862

George Strange: a tailor and draper of Wellington Street, Luton. He also had a shop on Market Hill managed by his son. On 24 July PC Ludwig came to the shop in Wellington Street and showed him the coats. They were his property and worth 10 shillings each. He went with Ludwig to Mr Christies’s the pawnbroker. He saw more coats there which were his property. One was worth 23 shillings and the other 11 shillings and 8 pence. Edwin Strange: son of George Strange and he managed his fathers business at the Market Hill shop. The prisoner came to the shop on 23 July and again on 24 July. She bought a round frock and a pocket handkerchief but no coats. She bought the round frock on 23rd but changed it on the 24th. On 24 July he saw the 4 coats which he identified as this fathers property and were stock from Market Hill. He had shown the prisoner some coats when she came to the shop. Mary Young: she was the daughter of the prisoner and lived in Duke Street, Luton. On the previous Thursday a young girl came to her mother’s house and sent her to the pawn shop with 2 coats. She did not know who the person was. He mother had been in the same room. She was lent 9 shillings on the coats and she gave the money and ticket to her mother. The young girl was not there when she returned. The girl brought 2 more coats and she took them to the pawn shop. The shop asked her father and mothers name and would not let her have any money on them. George Turton: an assistant to Henry Christie, pawnbroker at Bute Street, Luton. He knew Mary Young. On 24 July Mary Young came to the shop to pawn 2 coats. He lent her 9 shillings on them. Mary Young came again the same afternoon with 2 more coats. He lent her nothing and detained the coats. He advised PC Ludwig and gave him the last 2 coats. PC Richard Lambert: he was in charge of the police station at Luton. He produced a pawn ticket which he got from the prisoner when she was brought into custody. PC Christopher Ludwig: on 24 July he went to Mr Christie’s pawnbrokers and received 2 coats from George Turton. He showed the coats to Mr Strange who identified them as his property. Strange and his son went with him to Mr Christie’s and they found 2 more coats which Strange identified. He took the prisoner into custody. The prisoner replied that a young woman had brought them to her house for her to pawn and was coming again that night for the money. She said she did not know her name or where she lived. He found 5s 1 ¼d on the prisoner. Statement of the accused: she took nothing from the shop, only that which she had paid for. On Thursday a young woman came to her house and brought them [the coats]. The woman asked her to pawn them. She sent her little girl and they told her to come back in the morning. She sent her girl again in the morning and she put by the money her daughter brought back. The woman asked her to pawn 2 other coats and she sent her little girl but she came back without them. She gave the woman the money and it return was given a shilling and was lent 3 shillings. She saw the woman at the train station and never saw her again.

item

Young, Winifred,
Strange, George,
Strange, Edwin,
Young, Mary,
Turton, George,
Lambert, Richard,
Ludwig, Christopher

LUTON, Luton Bute Street, Luton Duke Street, stealing, coat, draper, pawnbroker's assistant