Police Investigate Post Office Thefts

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30528, 25 August 1964, Page 14

Police Investigate Post Office Thefts

• About £4OO has been stolen from multicoin public telephone booths in Christchurch during the last few months. Detectives have interviewed 13 Post Office employees about the thefts.

Post Office employees regularly collect the money-boxes from the telephone booths. Apparently it was discovered that these metal boxes could be opened with a screwdriver. Post Office authorities became suspicious because of the increasing popularity of the job of collecting the boxes. Post Office investigating officers made a check, and found a big drop in receipts from the multi-coin boxes this year compared with the same period last year. After further inquiries, the police were informed, and 13 Post Office employees were interviewed. The men have been suspended from work. Men changing shillings, sixpences. and pennies at a hotel in Christchurch gave the police a lead.

The theft of £4OO, which was being transferred from a suburban post office to the Chief Post Office in Christchurca about three months ago, is still unsolved. The money, as far as Post Office investigators and detecJ! ve * „ asc «rtain, reached the Chief Post Office, and was lodged in a strongroom. Several days later it had disappeared. A considerable number of Post Office emplovees used the strongroom during that period. After this theft, alterations to the security system to prevert a similar occurrence were made on instructions from the head office in Wellington of the Post Office. About 1900 workers are ejuployed in Christchurch by the Post Office.