Police stoned for 5 hours.
Mystery of night bombardment.
From our own correspondent, Epping, Monday.
Epping police were very much hurt, not to say annoyed, at a stone-throwing “incident” shortly before midnight yesterday. The son of a local hotel-keeper, while walking with his sister and a friend in St John’s-road, was struck with a stone. He stepped into the road to investigate, but had to retire before a heavy bombardment.
Soon P.C. Buckle appeared on the scene, and he proceeded to investigate by flashing his electric lamp along the sides of the road. Unconsciously he transformed himself into a target, and as a large stone flashed past his head he promptly switched off the lamp. Another constable arrived, and he, too, had to dodge the fusillade of stones.
Windows all around them were broken while they endeavoured to discover where the stones came from.
The position – from the police point of view – became hopeless, and the officers whistled for assistance. A force of police, in charge of an inspector, arrived, and in the intervals of dodging the stones they searched the neighbourhood. The bombardment showed no signs of decreasing in intensity, and a crowd of people, attracted by the police whistles and the flashing of lamps, gathered at the spot.
Many people were struck by stones, and it was not until five o’clock this morning that the one-sided battle ceased.
It was found that the stones had been taken from a rockery in a doctor’s garden, but nobody could be found there. Nobody, in fact, who could have thrown the stones was found, and the mystery is still unsolved.
Westminster Gazette, 9th September 1924.
Stone thrower hides.
The man who stoned a number of persons, including several police-officers, in St John’s-road, Epping, has not been discovered. It is supposed that the man filled his pockets with stones and climbed up a tree, from which he assailed the people in the road. During the stone-throwing (which took place just before midnight) the wind-screen of a motor-car was shattered.
Westminster Gazette, 10th September 1924.