Magistrate’s Court Truck Driver Admits 37 Thefts

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30822, 6 August 1965, Page 8

Magistrate’s Court Truck Driver Admits 37 Thefts

A truck driver employed to deliver coal did not pay to his employer the money he received from his customers because he used it to pay outstanding debts, Detective Sergeant E. J. Stackhouse told Mr E. A. Lee, S.M., in the Magistrate's Court yesterday when Kenneth Donovan Hayward, aged 42, unemployed, pleaded guilty to 36 charges of theft by failing to account, one of theft as a servant, and one of false pretences. Hayward was remanded in custody to August 9 for sentence. He was represented by Mr J. W. Dalmer. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said that on June 3, Stanley Hilton Thelning, a coal merchant, of Richmond, complained to the police that Hayward had failed to account for money paid to him by customers while he was employed for two months from March 29. Hayward issued receipts for the amounts paid to him, and the matter came to light only when Thelning sent accounts to his customers and they told him they had already paid. The accused failed to account for £79 Ils.

Dealing with the charge of theft as a servant, Detective Sergeant * Stackhouse said that Hayward failed to deliver coal, valued at £2 8s 9d, to a customer and sold it to another person in the Richmond area.

On July 30, while Hayward was on bail, he cashed a

valueless cheque for £25 13s at the Eastern Hotel. The accused said he had been given the cheque by another person, to whom he gave £2O of the money he received. Inquiries were continuing for this person. Restitution of £lO7 12s 9d was required. Hayward had 40 previous convictions, said Detective Sergeant Stackhouse. STOLE PURSE Doreen Prosser Jones pleaded guilty to stealing a purse containing £4 14s Id, the property of Maree Anne Thomas, on July 9. She was convicted and remanded on bail to August 12 for sentence. Jones went to the office of Lichfield Shirts, Ltd., and asked whether • she could see her sister. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said. While she was waiting, she got permission from the receptionist to take! her four-year-old daughter to a staff toilet. After a few minutes the receptionist opened the cloakroom door and saw they were leaving. The little girl told the receptionist her mother had touched a handbag.

Staff members were instructed to check any property they had 'eft in the cloakroom, and Thomas reported that her change purse, containing about £4, was missing. The police were called, and Jones denied stealing the purse. At the request of the police a woman on the staff searched her, and the missing purse was found. The Magistrate refused Jones’s request for suppression of name.

THEFT OF COPPER Alfred Bernard Duke, unemM, was remanded on bail just 12 for sentence on a charge of stealing 9761 b of copner wire and off cuts, valued at £ll2 7s 4d, the property of R. C. Rollo, Ltd. He pleaded guilty. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said that Duke admitted that with another man, who was known to the police, he stole the scrap metal on July 30 Duke had previous convictions.

DROVE UNDER INFLUENCE Stanley William Osborne Nicholson, aged 64, a retired carpenter, pleaded guilty to a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs In Ferry road on August 4. He was convicted and fined £4O. and disqualified from driving for three years. William Ivan Mcllroy, aged 50, a janitor at a freezing Works (Mr M. G. L. Loughnan) was fined £4O, and his driver’s licence was cancelled for three vears, on a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs on the Main North road at Belfast on July 24. He pleaded guilty. On a charge of hav!ng no warrant of fitness, to which he also pleaded guilty, he was fined £3.

THEFT OF CAR PARTS Lawrence Neil Houghton, aged 18 a labourer, was remanded on bail to August 12 for sentence on charges of theft of two wheel trims, valued at 10s, and unlawfully getting into a car. He pleaded guilty. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said at 9.45 p.m. a constable saw Houghton looking under the bonnet of a car in the yard of a car firm. He admitted that he was looking for parts for his car. DISCHARGED

Colin Vernon Stokes, aged 19, a travelling salesman, was discharged without conviction under section 42 of the Criminal Justice Act on four charges of assaulting three boys aged 12 and one aged 11. He was ordered to pay £l2 towards the cost of prosecution. Stokes, who oleaded guilty, was represented by Mr L. M. O’Reilly. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said that Stokes found the boys on the Shirley golf course. He took them into the trees, forced them to remove their trousers, and smacked them on the buttocks. The offences occurred during June. The assaults were of a minor nature and the boys suffered no injuries. Stokes said he had hit the boys to teach them a lesson because they had been stealing golf balls, damaging the greens, and giving him cheek. He denied there was any sexual motive in his conduct. He called at the Central Police Station on July 1 when he heard the police were making inquiries. The Magistrate said he was not unaware of the circumstances which gave rise to the annoyance, but Stokes acted wrongly in taking the law into Ms own hands. He was satisfied that nothing improper had taken place. The boys had no right to be where they were.

TWO CHARGES Desmond Leon Fitzgerald, aged 35, a steward, was remanded on bail to August 12 on charges of stealing a suitcase and contents, valued at £46 19s fid. the property of Alex ander William Stainton, and unlawfully getting into a car on August 4. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said that Fitzgerald broke into a car parked In Oxford terrace. He took a suitcase and was a short distance away from the scene when he was apprehended by the police. Fitzgerald said he was looking for money, as he had none and had nowhere to stay. THEFT FROM CAR William Thompson Patterson, aged 39. unemployed, pleaded guilty to stealing a suitcase and contents, valued at £46 19s fid. the property of Alexander William Stainton. on August 4. He was convicted and remanded tn custody to August 12 for sentence. t , Patterson kent watch while an accomplice broke into a car and ransacked it, Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said. Patterson. an alcoholic with a mental history, had 23 previous convictions. THEFT OF CHEQUE

Va'.ma Clara Burnett, aeed 4S, a atop aaatatant, wu remand-

ed on bail to August 12 on a charge of stealing a cheque for £B7 3s 3d which had been sent to her mother-in-law. She pleaded guilty. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said Burnett forged a signature on the cheque. She had previous convictions for dishonesty. WILFUL DAMAGE “No-one has much patience with vandalism. no matter whether those who commit it are drunk or sober." said the Magistrate when he fined three young men £7 10s each and ordered them to make restitution of £1 each. Brian Francis Isherwood, aged 17, a labourer, Colin Anthony Isherwood. aged 21, a wool presser, and John Kevin Kuru, aged 22, a labourer, pleaded guilty to wilfully damaging six panes of glass in a telephone booth in Waltham road. Mr P. J. Thompson, who appeared for Colin Isherwood, asked for suppression of Isherwood's name. This was refused, the Magistrate saying that the public were entitled to know who committed this type of offence. THEFT Michael Kenneth Pearson, aged 22. a workman, pleaded guilty to the theft of £22 and a pair of gym shoes valued at 15s, the property of Edward Raymond Kirk, on July 30. He was remanded in custody to August 12 for sentence RECEIVING David Malcolm Morrison Barbour, aged 41, unemployed (Mr R. G. Blunt), pleaded guilty to receiving cigarettes and liquor valued at £75 14s on July 5. He was remanded on bail to August 12 for sentence. After the Valley Inn was burgled Barbour was Interviewed by the police, DetectiveSergeant Stackhouse said. Barbour said he and another man drove to the hotel, but he did not realise his companion’s intention until he returned with the liquor and cigarettes. There was little doubt that Barbour had acted under the Influence of the other man. SHOPLIFTING

A man, who was granted Interim suppression of name, pleaded guilty to two charges of theft. He was convicted and remanded on bail to August 12 for sentence. Mr A. Hearn appeared for the accused. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said the man was seen on July 21 taking two handkerchiefs, valued at 4s, from Beath and Company, Ltd.'s, store. Later that day police searched the man’s flat and found clothing valued at £2B 17s lid, which he admitted stealing from various stores between June 21 and July 21. A woman, whose name was suppressed, was remanded on ball to August 12 for sentence on a charge of stealing a. jar of jam, valued at 4s 7d, the property of the Self-Help Coop., Ltd., on July 23. She pleaded guilty. THEFT ADMITTED A girl, whose name was suppressed, was remanded on bail to August 12 for sentence on a charge of stealing £l2 between March 22 and June 3. She pleaded guilty, and was represented by Mr A. K. Archer. Detective Sergeant Stackhouse said the firm which employed the accused complained to the police that there was a shortage of £163 Ss 9d in one of its departments. The accused at first denied the offence, but later admitted it. She said that she was not the only one who had stolen money. DISCHARGED Charged with behaving in a disorderly manner in Cathedral square on July 16, Graeme Donald Peters, aged 20, a truck driver (Mr M. J. Glue), pleaded not guilty. He was discharged

without conviction under section 42 of the Criminal Justice Act. REMANDED Herbert Burnett Lee, aged 55. a company manager, was remanded on bail to August 19 on charges of driving under the influence of drink or drugs in Humphreys' drive, driving in a manner which might have been dangerous, failing to stop after an accident, and failing to ascertain whether anyone had been- injured. Rupert Spencer, aged 73. a retired engineer, was remanded on bail to August 12 on a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs at Kaiapoi on July 19. Leslie James Marsh, aged 19, a spray painter, was remanded in custody to today so that he could have a medical examination to see whether he is fit to be sent to a detention centre. Marsh was appearing for sentence on two charges of driving while disqualified. Brian Patrick Docherty, aged 46, a packer, was remanded on bail to August 12 on charges of false pretences, obtaining credit by fraud, and driving while disqualified. Donald Fraser Stewart, aged 55, a wool sorter, was remanded on bail to August 19 on a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs on the tunnel road on July 30. Richard John Rutherford, aged 31, a truck driver, was remanded on bail to August 12 on a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs in Fendalton road on July 31. Charged with driving while disqualified on July 30. Roy Robert Gourley, aged 18, a workman, was convicted and remanded to today for a medical examination to determine whether he is fit to enter a detention centre. William Richard Alrey, aged 45, a carpenter (Mr S. G. Erber), was remanded to August 12 on charges of assaulting Nettie Alice Alrey and Jennifer Alice Airey on July 29. Bail was renewed. (Before Mr K. H. J. Headifen, S.M.) SMUGGLED RADIO On a charge of smuggling at Lyttelton on June 21, Lenin Maurice Whittaker, a waterside worker (Mr W. S. Smith), was convicted and fined £25. He pleaded guilty. Prosecuting for the Customs Department, Mr N. R. Morgan said that Whittaker admitted buying a transistor radio from a Chinese seaman on board the Crusader. He said he had bought it for his personal use only. The Magistrate said he was taking this into account in imposing a fine. BURGLARY George Leonard Jury, aged 18, and George Norman Reeve, aged 17, both forestry workers, appeared for sentence on one joint charge of burglary at Westport, two of false pretences at Westport and Cronadun, and one of attempted false pretences at Reefton. All the offences were committed on July 26. Mr G. R. Lascelles appeared for both accused. Jury was sentenced to Borstal training and Reeve to a detention centre. On a charge of wilful damage at Nelson on May 22, Reeve was convicted and discharged. DISMISSED A charge of theft of a registered letter containing £5 on January 29, against a woman whose name was suppressed (Mr J. W. Dalmer), was dismissed. The charge was partly heard on July 15. BURGLARY On two charges of burglary of Dick’s Diner in Fitzgerald avenue on July 18 and July 26,

Mark Moeroa Tauwhare. aged 20, a workman (Mr G. R. Lascelles), was convicted and sentenced to Borstal training. DEPOSITED RUBBISH The following were fined for depositing rubbish in a public place: David Barrow, £7: Donald William Hudson, £7; Robert Scott Johnson. £2: Barry Francis Lewis. £10: Strathalian John George McKnight. £7; James Morrison. £5: Robert William Stapleforth. £7: George Whyte, £7. NO SIGNS For failing to mark construction work adequately Andrew Charles David Jeffery and Maurice Stanley Jeffery were fined £25. For failing to maintain coloured lights they were also fined £25. (Before Mr E. S. J. Crutchley, S.M.) FINED £22 10s. Charged with disorderly behaviour in Cathedral square on July 26. Trevor Ernest Bartlett, aged 21. unemployed (Mr G. R. Lascelles), pleaded not guilty. He was convicted and fined £5. with an order for payment within seven days, in default five days’ imprisonment. To charges of careless use of a vehicle, failing to stop after an accident, and failing to ascertain whether anyone was injured he pleaded guilty. On the charge of careless use, he was convicted and fined £7 10s. and his licence was cancelled for one year. On the charge of failing to stop, he was fined £lO and his licence was cancelled for six months, and on the other charge, he was ordered to pay costs. On these three charges, an order was made for payment within seven days, in default nine days' Imprisonment, 11 days’ imprisonment, and one day's imprisonment respectively. The periods of disqualification are to be concurrent, and the periods of imprisonment cumulative.

On the driving charges. Sergeant P. J. Alty said that at 6.35 p.m. on July 26, Bartlett was in his parked car outside the United Service Hotel. When approached by a constable. Bartlett accelerated away, and struck a taxi which was correctly parked in the taxi zone outside the hotel. Bartlett did not stop. When arrested he was found to be a borderline case of drunkenness. Mr Lascelles said that Bartlett Intended to leave New Zealand soon. CHARGE DISMISSED Charged with theft of a transistor radio valued at £26. the property of Brian Charles Hogg, on July 21. Phillip Bernhard Redmond, aged 18, a truck driver’s assistant (Mr L. M. O’Reilly), pleaded not guilty. The charge was dismissed. BENCH WARRANT A bench warrant was Issued for the arrest of Leslie Roy Hawkins, aged 49, a barman, who failed to appear on a charge of driving under the influence of drink or drugs on July 12. (Before Mr H. J. Evans, S.M.) DECISION RESERVED Denis Vincent Lees, aged 18, a machine moulder (Mr R. G. Blunt), appeared on a charge of obstructing Sergeant B. P. Peoples in the execution of his duty on July 3. After hearing evidence by Lees, the Magistrate reserved his decision on the case, which had previously been adjourned partly heard, and remanded Lees on renewed bail to August 16. REMANDED FOR SENTENCE Graeme Herbert Milton Claridge, aged 23, a welder (Mr R. G. Blunt), was remanded in custody to today when he appeared for sentence on charges of driving while disqualified and driving at a speed which might have been dangerous on April 17, and theft of a driver’s licence, the property of Noel Townsend, on December 20, 1963. DROVE UNDER INFLUENCE James Toohy, aged 48, a carpenter (Mr L. G. Holder), pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of drink or drugs on July 23. He was convicted and fined £35, and disqualified from driving for three years.