In 1862 Daley’s cousin, John O’Meally, came under the influence of the bushranger, Frank Gardiner, who had begun armed robberies in the district and using the Weddin Mountains and the nearby Pinnacle Range as refuges. Gardiner was a frequent visitor to O’Meally’s inn in the Weddin district. Whether or not Patsy Daley was involved in criminal activities at this stage is not known, but he was certainly associating with his cousin, who had already joined with Gardiner in committing robberies. In March 1862 O’Meally, Daley and another cousin (surname Downey) were apprehended on suspicion of being involved in the highway robbery of the storekeepers, Alfred Horsington and Henry Hewitt, near Wombat on 10 March 1862.Lambing Flat, Sydney Morning Herald, 21 March 1862, page 3. O’Meally had been part of the gang led by Gardiner who carried out the robbery, but in the end the three young men were released without charge due to insufficient evidence.
