CONVERTED CARS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 50, Issue 124, 7 March 1930, Page 3

CONVERTED CARS

OFFENCE BY A YOUTH. SERiES OF THEFT CHARCES. (Special to the “Guardian.”) CHRISTCHURCH, March 6. A youth of 19 pleaded guilty in the Magistrate’s Court to-day to seven charges of theft of money or goods, and to four charges of converting motorcars to his own use. John Robert Dodge, the accused, was represented by Mr H. de R. Fleslier. Mr E. D. Mosley, S.M., was on the Bench. The accused was ordered to be detained in the Borstal Institute for a period of two years. The charges of theft were as follow (1) On July 5, 1929 at Christchurch. stealing a bicycle valued at £l3 10s the property of Roy Rowntree; (2) on or about December 13. 1929. at Rangiora, stealing £1 13s 2d in money, the property of Johnson’s North Canterbury Motor Company, Ltd; (3) on or about February 1, 1930, gt Christchurch, stealing £l, /s in money, the property of Frances Alice Ockenaen; (4)on or about January 28, 1930, at Christchurch, stealing a cornet mouthpiece valued at 7s 6d. the property of Charles Begg and Co., Ltd.; on December 21, 1929, at Christchurch, stealing two leather pocket wfillets oi a total value of 11s, the property of Henry Vincent; (6) on November 29, at Rangiora, stealing £1 2s 6d in money, the property of Margaret Elizabeth Sanderson; (7) on or about December. 21, 1929, at Christchurch, stealing a lady’s handbag valued at £1 4s, the property of Johnt Henry Badcock. The charges of conversion of motor cars to his own use were as follow: — (1) On February 7. at Christchurch, a Ford coupe valued at £250. the propertv of Charles Hamilton Gould, (2) on December 21, at Christchurch, a car valued at £4OO, the property of Frederick Henry Field; (3) on November 1, a car valued at £300; and (4) on January 2, a Willvs-Knight valued at £l5O the property of Kenneth Hore. Detective-Sergeant Young said that accused was before the Court on January 20, when he was admitted to probation. The accused, wanting to clear the matters up, had admitted the offences, some of which had not been reported to the police. The accused had cleared up tlie cases. In regard to the first charge, he returned.to a shop and stole the money from tlie In the second case the bicycle was stolen from Oxford Terrace AVhen accused’s father knew -of the theft lie purchased a new bicycle for tlie owner accused retaining the old one. The handbag mentioned in the third charge was stolen from a motor-ear The “cornet mouthpiece had been returned. Restitution had been made of the two wallets, which were stolen from a shop. The sum of 22s 6tl mentioned in the sixth charge was taken from a shop till. Tne lady s handbag was stolen from a shop in Colombo Street. . In regard to the conversion of cars, continued the Detective-Sergeant, the accused drove to Rangiora m » car which had been left in Cashel Stree. l,y Dr. Gould. The accused abandoned the car when it ran out -of petrol He took his bicycle on the trip and rode it hack to Christchurch. Another trip was from Christchurch to Mount Grey and the AVaimakarir. Gorge and hack to the city. Another ear was taken from Gloucester Street and recovered at AY bite’s Bridge, wliete it was abandoned owing to a puncture. Another car was left in tlie Ashley riverbed. _ , “In all cases,” stated the DetectiveSergeant, “restitution has been made between accused’s father and the complaintants. Accused is nineteen yeais sf age, and lias been employed most ot the time by his father, who is a lespectable man.” Mr Fleslier said that accused s fatner had already paid £2O 12s 6d in restitution. The father, when making restitution, had taken accused with him so as to impress him with the seriousness of the offences. Counsel asked for the suppression of accused s name His mother was breaking down in health and it seemed as if tne boy had been punished on all sides. “He only gets what he deserves, said Mr Mosley. “If I had only known the extent of his delinquencies when dealing v/ith the first _ case 1 would not have been so lenient. 1 suppose one is always inclined to err on the side of leniency whenever it is possible to do so. There is only one tiling to do with this young man, whose series of crimes is spread over a long period. The public relies on the Court to protect them from the depredations of a criminal such as this voung man has proved himself to be. He is ordered to he detained at the Borstal institution for two years.”

three youths convicted. AUCKLAND, March 6. The three youths—Wilson, Chapman and Bissett—who escaped from the Pukekohe police cells recently and drove off in a car which thev borrowed, but were recaptured, pleaded guiltvi in tlie Police Court to-day to converting a motor-car valued at £I»U to their own use. Since the tliett of the car each had been sentenced to three years’ Borstal detention The youths were convicted and discharged.