Privates Stanley Ernest Boon and Arthur John Smith.

Privates Stanley Ernest Boon and Arthur John Smith.

These two soldiers were serving in the North Staffordshire Regiment in the summer of 1939 and were based at Thursley in Surrey, together with Pte. Joseph William Goodwin.

On the evening of Thursday the 4th of July, 1939, the three men decided to go drinking together.  They caught the bus into Hindhead and went to The Royal Huts hotel. This was demolished some 20 to 30 years ago and is now a housing estate.

Here they met 42 year old Mabel Maud Bundy who was a maid at the Moorlands Hotel at Hindhead and who had come in for a drink with a female friend.  By closing time, the friend had already left and the three soldiers offered to walk Mabel back to the Moorlands, where she lived in. The Moorland Hotel building is still there and is now a nursing home.

Mabel left with them and appeared to be quite happy.  As the group neared the Moorlands things turned nasty.  The soldiers decided to rape Mabel and then kill her.

Her body was found the next morning in the hotel grounds by Thomas Mitchell the kitchen porter.  An examination showed that she had been sexually assaulted.  The autopsy carried out by Professor Keith Simpson, found that her nose had been broken and that she had died from a heavy blow(s) to the side of the head, thought to be from violent punches, inflicted by a strong man.

Witnesses came forward to say that they had seen Mabel leaving the Royal Huts with three soldiers and they were invited to an identity parade of the 152 soldiers at the camp in Thursley.  Agnes and William Dopson were able to identify Boon. 

Forensic tests showed blood on the clothes of 27 year old Boon and 26 year old Smith and semen on Boon and 29 year old Goodwin. All were arrested and taken to Farnham police station.

Boon and Smith admitted having sex with Mabel but claimed it was consensual and denied intending to murder her, claiming that they only intended to “knock her out” after she changed her mind having first had intercourse with Smith. 

All three were tried at the Old Bailey before Mr. Justice Oliver on the 12th to the 21st of September, 1939.  Boon and Smith were convicted and Goodwin acquitted of murder as there was no real evidence that he was an accomplice to rape - he himself hadn't used violence, so he could only be guilty of murder, if he were guilty of the rape, which the jury decided he wasn't.  

Boon placed the blame on Smith, saying “I am innocent of any violence that night, it was just a matter of being present with Goodwin who got acquitted.”  However, he chose not to appeal.  Smith did appeal but this was dismissed on the 11th of October, with Lord Hewart describing the crime “as one of ferocious and repulsive brutality”.  Lord Hewart was the Lord Chief Justice at the time and was sitting with Justices Charles and Humphreys.

In view of the obvious animosity between Boon and Smith and to avoid a scene on the gallows it was decided to execute them on consecutive days.

At 9.00 a.m. on Wednesday the 25th of October, 1939 Boon was hanged at Wandsworth by Thomas Pierrepoint, assisted by Stanley Cross.  He was given a drop of 8 ft 9 in. (3 inches more than the maximum value in the drop table) on account of his slight build and weight of just 125 lbs., the prison doctor concurring with Pierrepoint’s proposed drop.

The following morning, assisted by Thomas Phillips, Thomas Pierrepoint executed Smith.  Smith weighed 154 lbs. and was given a drop of 7’ 3” causing fracture/dislocation of the 4th and 5th cervical vertebrae and “tearing of the junction of the medulla and pons.”