Today's bank robberies, like the recent theft in Grayshott involving a JCB to extract a cash machine, are often quick and relatively bloodless. However, a robbery in Bordon 100 years ago paints a much darker picture.

On the afternoon of April 3, 1924, William Hall, a clerk at Lloyds Bank near Bordon Camp, failed to show up at his usual bus stop after work. His friend, Charles Brooker, who worked at the neighbouring Midland Bank, was puzzled by his absence.

He approached the postmaster to ask if Hall had been seen, but the postmaster hadn’t. Concerned, the two men went to the bank to investigate.

When they arrived, they found the back door open, and inside, they made a horrifying discovery: Hall’s body lay behind the counter in a pool of blood. A gaping wound in the back of his head indicated that he had been shot. Upon closer inspection, around £1,000 in cash and coins was missing from the bank.

Superintendent Jones of the local police force quickly launched an investigation. Forensic tests revealed that Hall had been shot with a .455 Webley revolver, a firearm commonly used by British soldiers at the time. This led detectives to suspect military personnel stationed at the nearby St Lucia barracks, home to the 2nd East Lancashire Regiment.

A roll call and inventory at the barracks initially showed no missing soldiers or weapons, but two servicemen were asked to give statements. 

One of them, a signaller, said he had spoken to the bank manager around 1.50pm, and when he returned later, at about 2.15pm, the bank was already closed. His testimony helped police estimate the time of Hall’s death.

Another witness, 18-year-old Lance Corporal Abraham “Jack” Goldenberg, had also visited the bank that day to cash a cheque around 1.45pm. He claimed to have noticed a car waiting outside, and provided a description of the vehicle and its occupants. However, suspicions soon focused on Goldenberg himself.

Three weeks earlier, Goldenberg had requested a discharge from the military to marry his girlfriend and take up employment as a clerk. He was told that unless he could pay £35 - equivalent to about £1,800 today - he would have to remain in service. Unable to afford the sum, Goldenberg’s request was denied.

There are multiple accounts of how Goldenberg was eventually apprehended, but all versions point to his suspicious behaviour.

In one account, Goldenberg was caught red-handed retrieving a package containing the bank’s money in a latrine. In another an officer found the parcel in the roof beams of a hut.

Regardless of the exact sequence, Goldenberg was arrested, and nearly the entire stolen sum was recovered.

Once in custody, Goldenberg gave two conflicting stories. First, he admitted to returning to the bank before 2pm, shooting Hall, and stealing the money. Later, he claimed an accomplice named Meredith had shot Hall while he only participated in the theft. 

Both stories, however, failed to convince the police and the soldier was charged with murder at Alton Police Court prior to being tried at the Winchester Assizes on June 19, 1924. 

The prosecution argued the murder had been carefully planned to get the money Goldenberg needed to secure his discharge and marry his girlfriend. 

The defence called a neurologist who claimed that Goldenberg was suffering from ‘dementia praecox’, a mental condition that supposedly rendered him incapable of understanding the consequences of his actions.

However, the jury was unconvinced, and they found Goldenberg guilty of murder.

On July 30, 1924, Goldenberg was hanged at Winchester Prison. The £1,000 stolen from the bank, worth about £50,000 today, was a substantial amount at the time, but it was far from enough to justify taking a man’s life.

The £1,000 must have seemed a lot in 1924, just over £50,000 in today’s money - but not enough to pay for someone's life. Jack Goldenberg’s story is told in Steve Fielding’s book Hanged at Winchester, published in 2010 by Stroud.