HARD LABOUR.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 203, 29 August 1939, Page 10

HARD LABOUR.

LAUNCH THETIS.

SECOND MAN CAUGHT.

SEAMAN WITH A RECORD.

WOULD RETURN TO ENGLAND.

Investigations carried out over a lenathy |km'ioil by Detectives A. Moore aml !•'. Brady concerning thefts from |i|cd-nre l.tuii>-hes moored in the Waitemata Il.irlioiir reunited in the appca i'iim e before -Mr. F. TT. Tx?vien. >.M., of the rei'ond mini to bo dealt with for such raids. A seaman by occupation. lie wart sentenced to a term of imprisonment with hard labour, to be followed by a period of reformative detention. The accused was Frank Norman Harrop (It.'i), for whom Mr. Aekins appeared. He pleaded guilty to charges of stealing, on July IS, eight blankets the property of some person unknown; on July 17, a quantity of tools and a pair of binoculars of a total value of £17 10/. the property of Arthur Stanley Parker; and. on July 24 tool* valued at £•> •$/, belonging to John Martya Wilson and Jack Could. Stolen Property Sold. Detective Moore produced a statement made by accused, who said he went out to one launch in a dinghy with another man, who handed the stuff to him. Harrop said he did not wish to disclose the name of the other man. He admitted selling some of the stolen property to dealers. It was t;ta(ed bv Detective-Sergeant Mi-Hugh that Mr. Parker's launch, moored in Mechanics' Hay. was securely locked, but was broken into between July 1"> and 22. Articles worth .tIT 10/, including a vice and emery wheel, were stolen. The vice and emery wheel were both screwed to a licnch on the boat and no little trouble must have been taken to remove them. Most of the stolen articles were recovered by detectives from dealers to whom Harrop sold them. Mr. Wilson's launch was stored safely in a shed in Ngapipi Road. Orakei, the door of which was forced njien and articles worth .£5 taken. In both eases the owner* had reimbursed the pawnbrokers who had bought the articles. Harrop sold eight blanket*! to a dealer for lti/. There was little doubt that these blankets canto from a launch or launches which had been tied up for the winter. Built Up a List. "Harrop arrived in New Zealand in February of 19118," added Mr. McHugh. "and since then he has built up for himself a good list of criminal convictions." i Mr. Aekins said Harrop was protecting another man from whom he said he received the stolen goods. Harrop refused to say who the other man was, Harrop only received fl 4/ for the articles lie j had disposed of to dealers. All of this money he said he handed to the other man and. that all he got out of the I transactions were a few drinks, j Mr. T,cvien: Do you mean that he i sold £22 13/ woeth of tools for 8/? Mr. Aekins: ~Those arc my instructions, sir. "Well, it's perfectly outrageous and ridiculous," replied the magistrate. Detective-Sergeant MeHugh; There might be circumstances surrounding the purchase of the tools and other articles that might affect the price given. The dealers might have been assisting the police bv buying the tools. "I see." said Mr. Levien. "However, it doesn't make any difference to the accused." Not for the Army Yet. A plea for leniency on behalf of Harrop was made by Mr. Aekins, who said Harrop was anxious to obtain a ship and return to England to rejoin the Army. He was at present serving a sentence of orie month's imprisonment, which expired"to-morrow. Harrop had [ been drinking heavily when he disposed of the good*. It wan the other man who went on board and stole them. "Apparently Harrop is unable to keep himself away from dishonesty." remarked Mr. Levien. who sentenced Harrop to six months' imprisonment with hard labour on one charge, to be followed by 12 months' reformative detention on the other, to be cumulative. On the third charge he was convicted and discharged. "If he wants to return to England, the Prisons Board will deal with his application," said Mr. Levien.