The Sun. — 1860-05-17 (London, England)

THE MURDER IN SBOREDITCH.  SUICIDE OF THE MURDERER AND DISCOVERY OF THE BODY.—LATEST PARTICULARS. The detective police continued their exertions, until two o'clock yesterday in endeavouring to find the man Raddon, but no clue whatever could be traced of him until about ten o'clock, when the body of a man was dragged up by the towing rope connected with a barge which was being navigated through the Regent's-canal. It seems that, at the time named, several men were employed at Messrs. Garrod's coal wharf, Whitmore-bridge-road, Hoxton, when they saw the body of a male person suddenly rise to the surface of the water. They raised an alarm, when deceased was got out on to the towing-path. The deceased was not known at that time, and when taken out of the canal the hands were found to be firmly tied round with a pocket handkerchief, and the arms were lying upon the breast as if he, the deceased, had bound them round to prevent his struggling and to hasten his death. A police•constable was called and the deceased was placed upon a stretcher and conveyed to the dead-house at the rear of the Shoreditch workhouse, Kingsland-road, where it was immediately identified as being that of the murderer. The deceased's cap had been found floating in the canal some distance from the spot where the body was discovered, and there is no doubt that he committed suicide by leaping off the bank near the coal wharf, which is easily to be reached from the main road. Police-constable Buckley, of the N division, ascertained that the accused (Raddon) must have left home soon after the dreadful crime was perpetrated, for he went to the house of the deceased's sister (Mrs. Webb), residing at 6, Holloway-grove, at two o'clock on Tuesday. morning and knocked at the front door. The window was opened by Mr. Webb, who asked who it was, when Raddon replied, "It is Joe." He wished to come up stairs, but he was informed that he could not be admitted at that hour. He spoke in a low voice, and said that Mrs. Webb's sister was dying. He was not sober, but knew what he was about. He then went away, and it is supposed that he must have shortly afterwards committed self-destractions Yesterday afternoon about two o'clock the brother of the ' deceased man (Raddon), and several other relatives, called at the workhouse and identified the 1. body. The police searched the pockets of the d ceased, and the only things found were a clas knife, and a duplicate of a silk handkerchic:, pledged for 2s. on Monday last. ~ Yesterday raternoon, at three o'clock, Dr. Gat, of Finsbury-pavement, and Mr. Clark, the medical officer of St. Leonard's, Shoreditch, proceeded to the house where the murdered woman had beep discovered to make a minute examination of the body by order of the coroner, Mr. John Humphreys. The wretched female was still lying upon the bed, as she was first discovered, upon the left side, in a pool of coagulated blood. The limbs - were quite stiffened, and deceased presented a sad and sickening spectacle. The blood from the wound had saturated the bedclothes, and had passed through the sacking of the bedstead on to the floor, and from thence had penetrated through the boards to the ceiling of the lower room or back parlour. The opinion expressed by the medical gentleman is that the deceased must have been xnurdered while fast asleep, and that the murderer tad stood behind her with his left hand over her mouth while he inflicted the fatal injury with the right hand. The wound nearly severed the head from the trunk, and had penetrated the upper cervical vertebrae of the neck. It would also seem that after the incision the murderer had withdrawn the razor to the back part of the head, as there were several spots of blood upon the pillow, which must have dropped from the blade of the weapon, which had likewise been placed upbn the sheet behind the shoulders of the deceased, as there were marks indicative of the fact. The murderer must then have leaned over the body of his victim and placed the razor in the deceased's left hand, which lay immediately by the front of the face. The right hand was firmlyclenched and covered with gore. The deceased must have bled very rapidly, and death must have been instantaneous, and she could not have struggled nor have made any noise. There were narks of blood upon the chin as if the murderer had held the unfortunate woman's mouth. In the centre of the room was found a pail half filled with dirty water, where it is supposed that the murderer washed his hands, for close by the pail were found a wet towel, which bore marks of blood, and an old scrubbing-brush, which had been recently used. There was plenty of bread and other articles of food in the cupboard, and the breakfast things were upon the table in the centre of the room, which would show that the murderer and his victim had taken tea upon their arrival home. The police and Mr. Waller, the summoning officer, made a further search of the room yesterday morning, and in a drawer they found a number of duplicates and a county court execution paper for a distraint upon the goods of the murderer. The deceased woman was very respectably connected, and was a hardworking, industrious woman, clean in her habits, although the apartment where she and her paramour lived was very poorly furnished. A number of police officers were in charge of the house and body during the whole of yesterday, and crowds of persons still remained in front of the house att. late hour last night.