HISTORY OF THE DAY
According to Oleg Loginov
15th of November
CAPTAIN MOONLIGHT
Australian bushranger Andrew George Scott (1842-1880) became famous under the nickname «Captain Moonlight».
Scott was born in Ireland in the family of an Anglican priest, studied engineering, in London. When his family moved to New Zealand in 1861, Scott participated as an officer in the Maori War, and was wounded in both legs at the Battle of Orakau.
But then his biography began to acquire a criminal connotation. Andrew was accused of robbery and fraud and sent to prison several times, although he insisted on his innocence. After serving two-thirds of his 10-year sentence in Pentridge Gaol prison, Scott began making money by speaking publicly about the horrors of an Australian prison.
And soon began a career as a public speaker on prison reform. After that, the press began to attribute to him the commission of various crimes to which he was not involved. At some point, Scott decided to justify the reputation he had created and gathered a gang of young people he met during his lecture tours.
Scott and Nesbitt.
His deputy in the gang was Nesbitt, with whom they sat together in Pentrimge. Apparently, they were not just friends, but also lovers. Their gang included: Thomas Rogan (21), Thomas Williams (19), Gus Wren’ecki (15) and Graham Bennett (18).
Members of Scott’s gang.
Their gang became infamous when, on November 15, 1879, they descended on the small settlement of Vantabajeri, about 45 km from Gundagai, and took 25 local residents hostage. But soon the police and soldiers blocked the Bushrangers at Edmund Mcglid’s farmhouse.
The police gradually moved from tree to tree and drove the bandits into a separate back kitchen. When Nesbitt was hit by a bullet, Scott rushed to him. The newspaper then wrote that he «cried over him like a child, put his head on his chest and kissed him passionately.»
Meanwhile, the police broke into the house and tied up the leader of the gang. Other members of the gang were wounded or captured while trying to escape. Only Rogan managed to escape, but he was found the next day under a bed in Mcglead’s house.
Execution of Scott and Rogan
Scott and Rogan were hanged together in Sydney at Darlinghurst Prison at 8 o’clock on January 20, 1880, Scott’s father’s birthday. «Captain Moonlight» approached the gallows with a ring on his finger woven from a strand of Nesbitt’s hair. And before the execution, he expressed his last wish: «To be buried next to my beloved James Nesbitt, a man with whom I was united by all the ties that could bind human friendship, we were united in hopes, in soul and in heart, and this unity continued until he died in my arms.»
But his request was not fulfilled.
Rating on the topic «TOP police shootings with criminals».
*Texts from Wikipedia and other Internet resources were used.
*Translated using an electronic dictionary. The original text in Russian and much more on the criminal topic can be selected on the main page of the site — http://crimerecords.info/
