Vincent Ostler and William Appleby - murder in the course of robbery.

At 2.15 am. on Thursday, the 29th of February 1940, a break in took place at a shop in Wesley Road, Coxhoe, County Durham. Two young men, 24 year old Vincent Ostler and 27 year old William Appleby, had broken through a roof skylight into the Co-op store there in the early hours of the morning. A passing cyclist, Jesse Smith, noticed a light on (unusual in a shop at night in those days) and thought he saw a person inside. He decided to report this immediately to the police and constables William Ralph Shiell and William Stafford went with Smith back to the shop.

When they heard the police arriving, the robbers made a break for it by smashing through the front window and were chased by Shiell. One of the men shot 28 year old PC William Ralph Shiell in the stomach. He remained conscious long enough to tell Stafford that there were two assailants and that one of them had said "let him have it. He is alone" before the shot was fired. (Sound familiar? See the case of Derek Bentley.) Shiell was able to describe one of his attackers to colleagues before he died later the next day in hospital and give a sworn statement, which was used as evidence in court. PC Shiell’s funeral service took place at St Andrew’s Church, Spennymoor and was attended by some 200 policemen and a large number of civilian mourners.

The pair were arrested at their homes in Hawksworth near Otley in Yorkshire on the 4th of March. Ostler reportedly put up a struggle, but Appleby admitted to being present when Ostler shot PC Shiell although denied he had ever said “let him have it”.

Once again, the words "let him have it" were to prove significant at their trial at Leeds before Mr. Justice Hilbery in May. It was shown that Ostler had fired the fatal shot but by saying "let him have it" which Shiell had insisted Appleby had said, Appleby was held to have incited Ostler and was therefore equally guilty. The jury made a recommendation to mercy in the case of Appleby.

Their appeals before Justices Atkinson, Humphreys and Tucker were dismissed on the 25th of June and the law took its course at 8.00 a.m. on Thursday, the 11th of July 1940 when Thomas Pierrepoint, assisted by his nephew, Albert and Stanley Cross hanged them side by side within Durham prison. Appleby weighed 156 lbs. and was given a drop of 7’ 2”. Ostler was a pound heavier and his drop was 7’ 1 1/2”. In both cases the prison doctor noted that there were no injuries to the soft tissues of the neck. Some 50 people had congregated outside the prison to see the notices of execution posted.

It was reported in the press that Ostler and Appleby were members of a gang that had committed a string of robberies in various parts of the North East of England. Both were married men, Ostler worked as a motor mechanic and Appleby as a joiner. They had stolen a car from a doctor in Chester-Le-Street and had driven to Coxhoe on the morning prior to the break in to check out the Co-op.

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