Bassett Road machine gun murders
Encyclopedia
The Bassett Road machine gun murders were the murder
s of two men with a .45 calibre Reising submachine gun on 7 December 1963, at 115 Bassett Road, in the Auckland suburb of Remuera
in New Zealand
. The crime received considerable media attention and captured the public imagination for many years. Although the weapon was set to single and not rapid fire for the killings, word spread quickly of a "Chicago-style" gang murder previously unheard of in New Zealand.
Frederick George Walker, a 38-year-old commercial traveler, and Kevin James Speight, a 26-year-old seaman, were found shot several times with large caliber bullets at the Bassett Road house. Both men were believed to be illegally trading in liquor. Scientific investigation identified the weapon used as possibly a .45 calibre machine gun. John Gillies and Ronald Jorgensen were arrested on 31 December 1963 and stood trial starting 24 February 1964. Both men denied charges of murder, although Gillies admitted acquiring a machine gun for his own protection. Both men were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.
While in prison, Jorgensen took up painting and sold a number of his works. He was later paroled under strict conditions, including that he must remain in Kaikoura
living with his father for an indefinite period. Jorgensen vanished in mysterious circumstances in 1984, after his car was found wrecked at the bottom of a cliff. Police initially suspected that he faked his death, but later declared him legally dead
.
In 2010 an episode of TVNZ's The Missing directed by Tom Reilly traced the life and disappearance of Jorgensen and uncovered several eye-witnesses who claimed to have seen him in Perth in the late 80s/early 90s. The makers of the show concluded that there is strong evidence Jorgensen faked his own death and fled New Zealand in 1984.
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
s of two men with a .45 calibre Reising submachine gun on 7 December 1963, at 115 Bassett Road, in the Auckland suburb of Remuera
Remuera
Remuera is a residential suburban area within Auckland city, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located four kilometres to the southeast of the city centre...
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. The crime received considerable media attention and captured the public imagination for many years. Although the weapon was set to single and not rapid fire for the killings, word spread quickly of a "Chicago-style" gang murder previously unheard of in New Zealand.
Frederick George Walker, a 38-year-old commercial traveler, and Kevin James Speight, a 26-year-old seaman, were found shot several times with large caliber bullets at the Bassett Road house. Both men were believed to be illegally trading in liquor. Scientific investigation identified the weapon used as possibly a .45 calibre machine gun. John Gillies and Ronald Jorgensen were arrested on 31 December 1963 and stood trial starting 24 February 1964. Both men denied charges of murder, although Gillies admitted acquiring a machine gun for his own protection. Both men were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.
While in prison, Jorgensen took up painting and sold a number of his works. He was later paroled under strict conditions, including that he must remain in Kaikoura
Kaikoura
Kaikoura is a town on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 1 180 km north of Christchurch.Kaikoura became the first local authority to reach the Green Globe tourism certification standard....
living with his father for an indefinite period. Jorgensen vanished in mysterious circumstances in 1984, after his car was found wrecked at the bottom of a cliff. Police initially suspected that he faked his death, but later declared him legally dead
Death in absentia
Death in absentia is a legal declaration that a person is deceased in the absence of remains attributable to that person...
.
In 2010 an episode of TVNZ's The Missing directed by Tom Reilly traced the life and disappearance of Jorgensen and uncovered several eye-witnesses who claimed to have seen him in Perth in the late 80s/early 90s. The makers of the show concluded that there is strong evidence Jorgensen faked his own death and fled New Zealand in 1984.