John Rothera was a farmer of Warley.
He, his wife and daughter had gone to bed about midnight.
At 1:00 o'clock on 22nd May 1949, a group of 4 men woke Rothera saying
Ellis's cow's hanging
and asked him to come and look at a neighbour's cow, which was dangerously ill
When he opened the door, 2 of the men threw him on the floor and
ill-treated him in a most unmerciful manner
and the other 2 men went to his wife and daughter, and threatened them with death, to force them to disclose where their money was hidden.
At their trial, on 16th July 1849, Jonas Mitchell and William Snowden were found guilty of burglary and stealing £20.
On account of the aggravated nature of the crime, the Judge ordered the death sentence to be recorded against them, adding that the sentence would not be carried out, but they might expect to undergo a lengthened period of transportation – at the very least 18 years.
The other 2 men in the group are not mentioned in reports of the trial
Page Ref: MMR96
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