MAGISTRATE’S COURT Charge Of Possessing Narcotic Admitted

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31088, 17 June 1966, Page 7

MAGISTRATE’S COURT Charge Of Possessing Narcotic Admitted

When members of the Christchurch vice squad executed a search warrant on a room in a Timaru hotel they found a quantity of cannabis (marijuana) wrapped in plastic in a trousers pocket, Detective-Sergeant D. Porteous told Mr E. A. Lee, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday.

A young man, who was granted interim suppression of his name, was remanded on bail to June 23 for a probation officer’s report and sentence on a charge of being in possession of a narcotic at Timaru on June 13. He pleaded guilty. Detective-Sergeant Porteous said six grammes of cannabis were found in a trousers pocket in a tallboy in the Timaru hotel room. The accused frankly admitted that the narcotic was his property. He was arrested and cautioned. The accused had said that he had purchased the narcotic more or less on the spur of the moment from a man in Auckland for £l5. The accused was engaged in a special branch of his work which for a short time would net him from between £450 and £5OO in a good week, Detective-Sergeant Porteous said.

Mr H. W. Clarke, of Wellington, who appeared for the accused, said that when the accused was in Auckland he was approached by two men. He was slightly intoxicated

and he purchased the drug from them. The accused rolled himself one reefer but he did not like it He put the rest of the drug in his hip pocket and it was there that the police found it. The accused had not given the drug to any person and had had only one reefer himself. Mr Clarke made an application for the suppression of the accused’s name. “I will grant interim suppression of his name but I do not hold out much hope for final suppression,” the Magistrate said. POSSESSED OPIUM “It would be interesting to know how these people get the opium,” said the Magistrate when Gum Tong Young, aged 63, a retired factory hand (Mr D. H. Stringer) pleaded guilty to charges of possessing implements for smoking opium and possessing opium. He was fined £25 on each charge.

A search warrant was executed on Young’s residence on June 3 and seven grammes of prepared opium and nine grammes of raw opium were found, said Sergeant V. F. Townshend. Young, who had been in New Zealand since 1920, had been addicted to opium for 30 years and used it only to satisfy his own needs.

Mr Stringer said Young was one of the few elderly Chinese left in Christchurch who were addicted to opium. There were only about six left and they did no harm to anyone but themselves. They literally could not live without opium and could not take advantage of treatment offered.

As long as there were those who smoked opium there would be people willing to risk getting it to them, said the Magistrate. He refused suppression of name, saying that the fact that Young smoked opium would be well known to his family and others. FALSE PRETENCES Glorya Ann Cassidy, aged 17, unemployed, was remanded on bail to June 23 for sentence on a charge that she was a rogue and a vagabond in that she collected money by false pretences. She pleaded guilty. Detective-Sergeant Porteous said that about 2 p.m. on May 10 the police received a complaint that two girls were collecting money in New Brighton road for the poor and orphanages. The girls called at a number of homes with a tin. The police apprehended Cassidy and a 15-year-old girl in New Brighton road. Cassidy admitted she had endeavoured to get money from householders but said she had only managed to collect lOd. She got tired of collecting so she gave the money to her 15-year-old companion and placed her tin in a hedge. BURGLARY Allan Humphrey Garbett, aged 19, unemployed, was remanded in custody to June 23 for sentence on six charges of burglary. He pleaded guilty to all charges. Detective-Sergeant Porteous said two of the offences were committed in Christchurch, three in Masterton and one at Fairfield. Garbett took gas cutting equipment and a pair of goggles from the premises of R. Redpath, Ltd., at 258 St. Asaph street and then broke into the garage of Russell Thomas, Ltd., next door and took a number of tools. Restitution amounted to £289 6s Bd. Garbett had previous convictions. 11 CHARGES ADMITTED Douglas Rangl Cowan, aged 24, an unemployed workman, was remanded in custody to June 23 for sentence on 10 charges of burglary and one of theft. He pleaded guilty to all charges. Detective-Sergeant Porteous said that restitution amounted to £256 16s 4d. The offences were committed in May and June. On May 4 Cowan took property valued at £25 17s 6d from a parked car in Lismore street. STOLE CLOTHES Charged with theft of twp Jumpers and two pairs of doll's socks worth £5 4s lOd on May 20, Margaret Wood, aged 31 (Mr D. M. Palmer) was convicted and remanded on bail to June 23 for sentence. She pleaded guilty. Sergeant Townshend said a floor supervisor in Hay’s, Ltd., saw the accused put the clothing in her bag and walk out of the store without paying. When approached she admitted the offence and said she did not know why she did it. She had £26 in her possession at the time and had a credit account with the store. She was married and worked part-time as a nurse.

THEFT OF RADIO Anthony Raymond Stewart, aged 23, an unemployed shearer, was remanded on bail to June 23 for sentence on a charge of stealing a transistor radio, valued at £29 19s 6d, the property of Sedley Wells, Ltd., on June 3. He pleaded guilty. Sergeant Townshend said that at 8 p.m. on Friday, June 3, the manager of the shop was talking to a customer, who was also a party to the theft The manager saw Stewart leaving the shop and saw he had something concealed under his coat. The manager pulled the coat open and saw the transistor radio. Stewart bolted and was followed to the King George Hotel. He was a first offender. REMANDED IN CUSTODY Colin Wayne Greenbank, aged 23, unemployed, was remanded in custody to June 23 for sentence on four charges of burglary anyone of breach of pro-

bation. He pleaded guilty to all charges. Detective-Sergeant Porteous said Greenbank took television sets, a record player and a tape recorder, of a total value of £260 from a shop in Balclutha. He took clothing valued at £4O 10s from another shop in Balclutha.

Greenbank stole tools valued at £29 2s 6d from the shop of Peter Cooper in Ashburton, and £7 3s in cash and an electric razor from the U.F.S. Dispensary In Oamaru. He had previous convictions, Detective-Ser-geant Porteous said. CHARGE DENIED Royce James Tull, aged 41, a freezing worker (Mr M. J. Glue), , was fined £35 and his driver's licence cancelled for three | years on a charge of driving while under the influence of . drink or drugs at Waikuku on May 14. He pleaded not guilty. ] The Magistrate said Tull’s , driving apparently caused some concern to other drivers. He | was found to have had at least 15 beers. A traffic officer, two police officers, and a doctor all ' considered he was intoxicated ; and unfit to drive. , After reading a medical report submitted by Mr Glue, the : Magistrate said Tull was obviously in a very poor state of . health the next day when he 1 visited a doctor. i FINED £5 "Periodic detention is a prlvl- 1 lege because in your case it was an alternative to Borstal. If you offend again you will almost certainly go to Borstal,” the : Magistrate said when he fined Sidney Christian Matehe, aged 19, a council workman, £5 on a charge of failing to report at the work centre on May 15. THEFT FROM HOUSE John William Leonard, aged 24, a workman, was convicted and remanded on ball to June 23 for sentence when he pleaded guilty to a charge of theft of a transistor radio and clothing of a total value of £67 Is, the property of Ivor Waitene and others. Detective-Sergeant Porteous said that between 8.15 a.m. and 11.30 a.m. on June 3, Leonard entered an unlocked house and took the goods. Mr R. L. Kerr appeared for Leonard. FILLED FLAGON ON SUNDAY When a container owned by the person purchasing liquor was being filled then a supply had been made, said the Magistrate when convicting Eric Robert Booker, a barman, on a charge of supplying liquor after hours on April 24. Booker (Mr R. G. Blunt) pleaded not guilty. He was fined £lO. If a glass was being filled the supply was probably not complete until the customer took possession, said the Magistrate. Where flagons belonging to the customer were being filled the supply was made as soon as any liquor was put in one flagon. As the offence occurred on a Sunday and the amount of liquor Involved was large, he would treat the matter seriously, said the Magistrate. FURTHER REMAND Suppression of name was refused when William James Bardsley, aged 43, a bank teller, appeared on a charge of unlawfully getting into a fire engine worth £3500 on June 10. He was further remanded on ball to June 23. He was represented by Mr E. O. Sullivan. NAME SUPPRESSED A youth, whose name was suppressed, was remanded on bail to today for sentence on a charge of stealing 10s. He pleaded guilty. (Before Mr K. H. J. Headlfen. S.M.) FINED £3O Robert David Smith, a grocer, was convicted on charges that he failed to furnish returns of Income in 1964 and 1965. On each charge he was fined £l5 He did not appear. CHARGE DISMISSED A charge of selling pies containing extraneous matter—live fly larvae, on or about February 27, -against Stewart's Bakery, Ltd., was dismissed. The defendant company pleaded not guilty and was represented by Mr A. K. Archer. The Magistrate said there was no evidence when the pie had been contaminated. He was satisfied the company’s cooking methods and standard of cleanliness were satisfactory. (Before Mr H. J. Evans, 8.M.) FINED £75 "I regret having to sentence you,” said the Magistrate, when Noel Tehau Wakefield, aged 30, a barman, appeared before him for sentence on a charge of receiving a stolen television set valued at £lOO 9s 3d. "I agree with your counsel (Mr A. K. Archer) that this is not a case for imprisonment, and in fixing this penalty I am accepting the fact that this offence was out of character,” he said. Wakefield was fined £75 and ordered to pay .witnesses’ expenses of £3. CHARGES DISMISSED A charge of theft of a bag of coal, valued at Ils 9d, the property of the State Coal Depot, on November 19, against lan Lawrence Johnstone, aged 26, a driver (Mr S. G. Erber) was dismissed. A further charge of attempted theft of two bags of coal on December 7 was also dismissed. REMANDED George Hamilton, aged 35, unemployed, was further remanded to this morning when he appeared for sentencing on three charges of unlawful interference with a motor-car, a charge of theft and a charge of being a rogue and a vagabond in that he frequented a public place with felonious Intent.