Blandford Weekly News. — 1886-01-16 (Blandford, Dorset, England)

EXTRAORDINARY MURDER CASE.  An extraordinary murder case is now bring tried before the Assize court of the Stone. The accused are a man named Barbieri., a Madame Fevre, with whorn he lived, her mother, and two men named Parrot and Tissot. The person elm it is alleged woe murdered was a clerk in a municipal charity bureau. He was named Alston, lived at thee. crier of the Rue Itarributeau and the Rue St. Martin, and was an old bachelor who had many little oddities, one of which was an aversion to female domestics or attendants. It was said in the neighbourhood that he had hoarded a fortune. He also passed for being • literary man, having written a book. On the 15th of last October M. Maton started at half-pa,t 9 for his bureau, and returned home at 3. From that date he was never seen alive. Next day several persona rang at his bell, which he did not answer. This was thought unaccountable, and the police commissary was warned. Be came with a locksmith and found Mat, n's dead body leaning against a wall, the face ferward. Round his neck there was a thin cord, with a slip-knot. One end of the string, which was broken, was attached by a lop to a nail abeve the head of the corpse. Everything in the room ,eerned in order, and it WRS concluded that M. Alatou had committed suicide. His desks, drawers, boxes, &c., were placed under seal, and an intimation of what had ham erred was sent to the relatives, of the dec. ased, who re side in the Department of the Nerd. The seals were removed a month afterwards and, to the surprise of the relatives, neither money nor securities were found in the house. He hail at least an income of £4OO a year. A farm which belonged to him was let he £2O. He had invested a large sum in a restaurant of the Faubourg St. Antoine, at which he took his meals. lie NVAS very penurious, living alone, without any one to look after his house, and he way in the habit at boasting of the good investments that he had naade.A careful search was carried out in the house. In the lining of an old coat a list was found of securities belonging to the deceased, amounting to £3,200. Noce of the bonds to which the list referred having been found, a complaint was lodged with the criminal authorities. 'I he police soon discovered evidence that the deceased had not committed suicide. It was found that the nail could not have supported the weight of a human body. Then it was found that Alston could not have got up to it without a table or a piece of furniture of the same height; but there was no such article near the dead body when it was found. The string had not been torn into two pieces • it had been cut. There were traces of a struggle in the room. A vase had been broken, and the fragments were hidden in the fireplace. A walking.stick had been broken and hidden behind the furniture. Easily, a pocket- handkerchief was found which WAR twisted, and seemed to have been used as is gag. It was certain that a murder had t een committed. Inquiries were made of stockbrokers and at financial offices to ascertain what had become of the stock csrtificates and other securities. This led to the apprehension of Barbier, whose room in the Rue St. Martin Was immediately opposite that of Maton. Barbier, with the woman Fevre, had started a shop for the sale of flowers which had not succeeded. In July last he was living on small loans and on sums obtained trim pawnbrokers.ln August he suspended payment.lii September he was turned out of his shop. In the last half of Octeber he paid several of his creditors, recommenced business, and spent for furniture and articles of dress for Madame Fevre about £4OO. It was ascertained that the money had been obtained by the sale of securities belonging tc, Maton under false names. Barbier asserted that he had found a number of the documents one evening at the corner of the Rue de Venise. On being arrested he chewed great ingenuity in defending hineelf. He caused all sorts of documents to be fabricated and ante-dated to account for the possession of the securities. Elise Fevre who remained at liberty, greatly helped him. The manufacturers of the forma of stockbrokers' receipts were Tissot and Parrot. They undertook for £3OO to get the necessary forms printed for an imagi: ary stockjobber, whom they described as Rivoire. That no such person exists has been ascertained. Fevre has con. leased that Bsrbier told her how the crime was commitied. He got into the house by means of a false key. He hid himself behind the curtains, and when Alston entered he sprang upon him, twisted a i ocket-handkerchief round his neck and strangled him. He fund the securities in a portfolio. Barbier's last statenient is that the documents were handed to blur on the lfith of October by two men called Poncet and Rivoire,whom he met in a cur,.,but whose addresses he dm-ii not know. In his examination Bar bier, who is 25 years of age, denied that he was the murderer and that be had made any confession to Fevre. Fevre, in her I xartnnation, stated that Barbier had confessed his crime to her, and that she had told the truth, because a threat had been made to try her before the court as an accomplice of Barbier. Pinchon, the mother of Fisere, said that she got some of the stolen coupons from Burbler. Tissot, an accountant, admitted that he had prepared documents for Barbier, but said that he had no suspicion of fraud or crime. Parrot, who is a clerk employed by Barbier, denied that he ever said to Fevre, "Do not be stingy ; pay the £4O. My master risks his head for it." The trial is expected to last for some days.