The Shark Arm case

The Shark Arm Case refers to an incident that occurred in Sydney, Australia on ANZAC Day, 1935 when a human arm was regurgitated by a captive 3.5 metre tiger shark. The shark had been caught 3 kilometres from the beach suburb of Coogee in mid-April and transferred to the Coogee Aquarium Baths where it was put on public display. Within a week the fish became ill and vomited in front of a small crowd, leaving the left forearm of a man bearing a distinctive tattoo floating in the pool. Fingerprints lifted from the hand soon identified the arm as that of former boxer and small time criminal James Smith, who had been missing since April 7. Examination revealed that the limb had been severed with a knife, which led to a murder investigation. Three days later, the aquarium owners killed the shark and gutted it, hampering the initial police investigation.

Early inquiries led police to Reginald William Lloyd Holmes, a fraudster and smuggler who also ran a successful boat-building business. Holmes had employed Smith several times to work insurance scams, including one in 1934 in which an over-insured pleasure cruiser was sunk near Terrigal, New South Wales. Shortly afterward, the pair began a racket with Patrick Brady, a forger. With specimen signatures from Holmes' friends and clients provided by the boat-builder, Brady would forge cheques for small amounts against their bank accounts that he and Smith would then cash.

Smith was last seen drinking and playing cards with Brady at the Cecil Hotel in the southern Sydney suburb of Cronulla on April 7 after telling his wife he was going fishing [ Whiticker, Alan "Twelve Crimes That Shocked the Nation" 2005] . Port Hacking was searched by the Navy and the Air Force, but Smith's body was never found. This caused problems for the prosecution when Brady was eventually brought to trial.

Brady was arrested on 16 May and charged with the murder of Smith. A taxi driver testified that he had taken Brady from Cronulla to Holmes' address in North Sydney on the day Smith had gone missing, and that "he was dishevelled, he had a hand in a pocket and wouldn't take it out... it was clear that [he] was frightened" [ [http://www.abc.net.au/dimensions/dimensions_in_time/Transcripts/s546563.htm The Shark Arm Case - "Dimensions in Time" ABC radio transcript] ] .

Holmes denied any association with Brady but four days later, on 20 May, the businessman went into his boatshed and attempted suicide by shooting himself in the head with a .32 calibre pistol. However, the bullet flattened against the bone of the forehead and he was merely stunned. Revived by a fall into the water, he crawled into one of his boats and led two police launches on a chase around Sydney Harbour for several hours until he was finally caught and taken to hospital [ Kelly, Vince "The Shark Arm Case" 1963] . A month later, Holmes told Detective Sergeant Frank Matthews that Brady had killed Smith, dismembered his body and stowed it into a trunk that he had then thrown into Port Hacking. He also claimed Brady had come to his home, showed him the severed arm and threatened Holmes that he would be murdered [Whiticker] .

The following day, 11 June, Holmes withdrew £500 from his account and late in the evening left home, telling his wife he had to meet someone. He was also very cautious when he went out the door of his home, hence he was accompanied by his wife as he went into his car. Early the next morning, he was found dead in his car at Dawes Point. He had been shot three times at close range. In his 1995 book "The Shark Arm Murders", Alex Castles claims Holmes took out a contract on his own life to spare his family the public disgrace of conviction [Castles, Alex "The Shark Arm Murders" 1995] .

The coronial inquest into Smith's death began on 12 June, the same day Holmes was found dead with a gun placed by a police "dog" and gunshot wounds to his chest. Blood stains were also evident. The lawyer serving Brady, Herbert Vere Evatt (1894-1965), claimed to the Coroner that there was not enough substance to begin the 'inquest'. "The Shark Arm Murders" suggests that Smith was killed by Brady on the orders of gangland figure Eddie Weyman, who was arrested during a bank robbery apparently due to information Smith had given to the police [Castles] .

Cultural references

The Shark Arm Case was the basis of a 2003 episode of "".

Bill Bryson mentions this case in his book "Down Under" (known as "In a Sunburned Country" in the U.S.), but wrongly implies that the arm belonged to a swimmer who was eaten by the shark.

External links

[http://www.randwick.nsw.gov.au/default.php?id=307 History of Coogee Aquarium Baths]

References