They opened the front door and found the constable lying on the ground. They did not immediately know that he was shot, thinking him in a fit, and placed him on a mat outside and offering him water. Mr Short then sent men running to Kingston Police Station arriving about two o'clock. It was only when they had undone his overcoat that they found that he was wounded. First to the scene on his horse was Inspector Rushbridge, closely followed by Inspector Crowther with other constables and the ambulance litter. They then sent for Dr. W.H. Roots, the Divisional police surgeon. Atkins could not be taken to the nearest hospital at Surbiton because of his serious condition. Instead he was taken to Kingston Police Station where he was examined by Dr Roots. PC Atkins had been wounded in three places, the abdomen, chest and left thigh. The bullet to the chest had penetrated the lungs; the bullet remained in his back. A second bullet was found at the scene while the third was found in his clothing at the station. Constable Atkins did not die immediately, and before his death was able to tell colleagues that he neither saw nor heard anything before the shots. "I did not see anybody or hear anything which should me to imagine there were burglars at work. I went along the avenue slowly, accordingly to my usual custom when on duty there, but there was no-one about. Before I was aware of anything I saw something like the gleam of a lantern, and then whispers, after which there was a report, and then I felt I was struck by something sharp in the chest. I turned to one side quickly, when another shot was fired, and that’s all I can remember." Inspector Bond, with colleagues Crowther and Rushbridge, examined the grounds of The Knoll. They found that burglars had removed a protective iron bar from a ground floor lavatory window, beneath which in the bushes lay a bull's eye lantern in good condition and a large screwdriver made of an old blacksmith's rasp, taken out of the wooden handle, the top being bound round with a piece of blue check Oxford shirting. The steel had the name of the maker, "W.Peach," and on the flat the initials "F. B." Footprints were found that led towards Richmond Park. The murder was committed with a breach-loading, central-fire, six-shot revolver, '450 bore, and Boxer cartridges. The hammer has three cocks—the safety cock, the half-cock, and the full cock.