Captured: Portraits of Crime 1870-1930 - Flipbook - Page 55
neighbour’s property for help, return to his own house and give police the serial
numbers of the stolen notes. He died from blood poisoning a few days later. Local
people had reported seeing the ‘Benalla blacks’ in the locality at the time, and
Willie and Jacky became prime suspects in the attack.
Over the next two and a half years, Willie and Jacky evaded police capture
using their highly tuned bush survival skills as they travelled throughout NSW
and Queensland. There was the ‘outrage’ of a girl, Ellen Holder, and robberies
of foodstuff, supplies and weapons along the way. The bank notes stolen from
Mursckewicz were traced at various town stores. Sightings of the two were reported
in local newspapers and communication flowed between jurisdictions as police and
their trackers sought to apprehend the men. Rewards were offered for information
leading to their arrest. In February 1893 the duo became separated near Bundaberg,
and Willie was captured there in December. A month later, Jacky was apprehended
north of Mackay. Their capture was a prize for Queensland Police brothers Nat and
Tom King. Regarded as expert trackers, horse and bush men, the King’s had
methodically hunted down the ‘Dora Dora Blacks’ (as the duo had become known) and
found them to be formidable with a strength and speed that belied their small build.
The trial of Willie and Jacky took place at Albury Circuit Court on
11 April 1894. Detective Sergeant Sainsbury, who had overseen their work as
trackers in Benalla, gave evidence that while in the Albury lock up, Jacky had
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