RAIDS ON STORE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 48, 26 February 1937, Page 10

RAIDS ON STORE.

PRISONERS' ESCAPADES. GAOL TERMS INCREASED. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WANGANUI, Thursday. At the Supreme Court to-day Mr. Justice Smith sentenced Hugh Simorn to two years" hard labour for breaking and entering and theft at Taylor's store, Turangi, and six months for mischief, the terms to be concurrent, but cumulative with a sentence at present being served. Hori Ware pa pa, who also participated in the above offence, was sentenced to 18 months, also six months for mischief, concurrent, and cumulative with the sentence he is now serving. His Honor remarked that it had been suggested as an excuse that the food was of bad quality at the prison camp, but he wanted to make it plain that the Court was not conducting an inquiry into the administration of prison camp*. It was concerned only with whether the prisoners were guilty of the offences. Prisoners must understand that if they had any cause for complaints they should have been made through the proper channels to the visiting justices, who were not a part of the ordinary prison administration. It was quite clear that the prisoners were not starving.

The prisoners would reflect, added hi* Honor, that it may be that as a renult of these crimes the liberty given to prisoners in these camp* would b* ev» tailed. The jury'* rider had l>een forwarded to the Minister of Justice, and no doubt steps would be taken to see that resident storekeepers in the district would be protected from the escapades of prisoners by night.

(Jeorge Henrv Trillo. for receiving stolen goods. was sentenced 1n nine, months, cumulative with the sentence he is serving.