MAGISTRATE’S COURT Former Branch Manager Sent To Gaol For Stealing From Bank

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31154, 2 September 1966, Page 7

MAGISTRATE’S COURT Former Branch Manager Sent To Gaol For Stealing From Bank

“There is no explanation for this offence other than that you were living beyond your means, and the Court would be failing in its duty if you were not imprisoned,” Mr K. H. J. Headifen, S.M., said in the Magistrate's Court yesterday when he sentenced Peter James Baxter, aged 29, a former branch manager of the Canterbury Savings Bank, to nine months’ imprisonment on a charge of theft as a servant of £950,

Baxter, who pleaded guilty to the charge last week, was appearing for sentence. Mr L. M. O'Reilly, who appeared for Baxter, said that full restitution had been made. The money had been advanced by Baxter’s grandfather and interest would also be paid on the money that was taken.

It was a tragedy for a man of Baxter’s previous excellent record to appear on a charge of this nature. He was a good father and a devoted husband with two young children. Baxter had never been involved in dishonesty before though he had plenty of opportunities.

The Magistrate said he had spent a considerable time considering the case and had read all the reports, including the one from the psychiatrist, several times. The accused, who came before the court for the first time, was a married man with two young children, and had an excellent previous record. “However, while a branch manager of the bank you coolly and deliberately over a period of 12 months defrauded your employer of a substantial sum of money,” the Magistrate said to Baxter. “This is not the case of a young man yielding to sudden temptation. Some of the money was spent on items

which might be classed as luxury living, and I can find no mitigating circumstances.

“The Court has a duty to protect the trust employers place in their workers, especially when they are employed by a bank. If it had not been for the fact that full restitution has been made the term of imprisonment would have been much longer,” the Magistrate said. THEFT FROM RAILWAYS George Ball, aged 53, a machine operator, was remanded on bail to September 8 for sentence on charges of theft as a servant of tools and springs, valued at £2 8s 6d, the property of the Railways Department, and with receiving a transistor radio and chamois leather, of a total value of £2l 12s 6d when he knew they had been dishonestly obtained. Ball, who was represented by Mr R. G. Blunt, pleaded guilty to both charges. Sergeant V. F. Townshend said the goods were found when detectives executed a search warrant on Ball’s home. Ball denied stealing the radio and chamois leather and said they had been wrapped in a parcel and placed on his cycle. He declined to name the person who had put the parcel there. Because of the ease with which property could be obtained he just carried on stealing from railed consignments, James Roy Johnston Lawrie, aged 53, a railway checker, told the police, said Sergeant Townshend. Lawrie was charged with theft as a servant of goods worth £73 from the Railways Department between January 1, 1963, and August 19, 1966. He pleaded guilty and was represented by Mr J. E. Ryan. He was convicted and re-

manded on hail to September ' 8 for sentence. Lawrie could only say he had been a fool and that he had known it was wrong to take the goods, said Sergeant Townshend. “BIG-TIME INDISCRETION” “When does indiscretion end and crime begin?” the Magistrate asked when Graham Wayne Thomas, aged IS, unemployed, appeared for sentence on a charge of theft of a television set worth £9O on or about September 10 last year. Thomas's counsel (Mr G. R. Lascelles) asked for suppression of name as Thomas was young, a first offender with no record of dishonesty, and the offence was the result of a youthful indiscretion. The set was a hired one which had been left in a flat by the previous tenants. Thomas had been under financial strain and had sold the set to his landlord for £3O. "j am asked to treat this as an indiscretion of youth,” said the Magistrate. "When does indiscretion end and crime begin? This is getting into big-time indiscretion—the amount Involved would be a month’s wages for many people who work hard to get it. “I am not prepared to gloss this over as a youthful indiscretion.” Thomas was placed on probation for one year ordered to make restitution of £5O, and to live and work as directed by the probation officer. Suppression of name was refused. HARBOURED ESCAPER David Charles Banks, aged 25, a salesman, was remanded in custody to September 8 for sentence on a charge of harbouring an escaper from a Child Welfare institution. He pleaded guilty. Sergeant Townshend said on July 8 three girls escaped from Kingslea. They hid during the day and arrived at the board-ing-house where Banks was staying. He gave the girls clothing as they were wet after swimming a river to avoid capture by members of the staff of the home. One of the girls slept with Banks. Banks said that he did not know that the girls had escaped from a home until two days after they arrived. "I have issued a warning to persons who harbour escapers from institutions as they cause the police and the country a good deal of trouble and expense," the Magistrate said, remanding Banks in custody. STOLE £25 Lester Stewart Chambers, aged 21, a carpenter’s labourer, was remanded on bail to September 8 for sentence on a charge of stealing £25, the property of Ralph Ashmore Hines, on August 21. He pleaded guilty. Sergeant Townshend said that Chambers took the money from a cafe in Manchester street. When arrested before boarding a flight to Auckland at the Christchurch airport, Chambers said he had spent the money on beer and clothing. “PAIR OF THIEVES” "You had both better realise that this Court adopts the old fashioned idea that honesty and integrity are something every decent person should have. In principle you are nothing more nor less than a pair of thieves,” the Magistrate told Noel Frederick Collingwood, aged 18. an apprentice butcher, and Gary Brian Love, aged 19, an apprentice plumber (Mr R. G. Blunt), when they pleaded guilty to three Joint charges of theft from car sale yards on August 28. Two pumps and an exhaust pipe extension were stolen. They were each fined £l5. BURGLARY- AND CONVERSION “One thing you can be sure of is that when I do deal with you you will no longer be in Christchurch,” said the Magistrate when remanding James Murray Hohepa, aged 18, a workman, in custody to September 8 for sentence on three charges of burglary and one of unlawfully taking a car. Sergeant Townshend said a car was taken from Papanui road on the evening of August 17. Early next morning the car was seen by a constable on patrol. During an ensuing chase speeds of 90 miles an hour were reached in Riccarton road. Two persons left the car and ran off. Hohepa was later interviewed and admitted he .iad been in the car.

REMANDED FOR OBSERVATION Barry John Kirkwood, aged

20, a driver, was remanded to September 30 for observation under Section 37 of the Mental Health Act when he appeared for sentence on eight charges of forgery committed on the West Coast during August. The Magistrate said that according to the probation officer’s report Kirkwood had attended Special School, had been in mental hospitals twice, suffered from black-outs as a result of a head injury, and also suffered from some form of epilepsy. OBSCENE EXPOSURE Kenneth Malcolm Victor Watson, aged 24, a storeman <Mr R. G. Blunt) appeared for sentence on a charge -of obscene exposure in Tuam street on August 11. He was fined £l5 and placed on probation for one year. STOLE SOCKS Reuben Charles Wilfred Darling, aged 52, unemployed, was fined £5 on a charge of stealing five pairs of socks, valued at £1 14s 7d from Galvins men's wear shop on August 26. He was ordered to make restitution of £1 14s 7d. He pleaded guilty. Sergeant Townshend said Darling took the socks after trying on trousers in a Lichfield street shop. He left the shop without buying anything and went to a nearby milk bar and asked the proprietor if he would like to buy some socks for £l. He showed the proprietor five pairs of socks which still had Galvin’s price tag on them. The milk bar proprietor tele, phoned Galvins and the police were called. When Darling was apprehended the socks were not In his possession. Darling had 119 previous convictions. Sergeant Townshend said. FIVE FIREARM OFFENCES Rodney Maxwell Woods, aged 19, a fork-lift driver (Mr I. C. J. Polson), was convicted and fined a total of £2B when he appeared on five charges relating to firearms. He pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a .22 calibre semi-automatic pistol on August 22, possession of unregistered firearms between January 1, 1963 and August 22, 1966, failing to notify a change of address to the arms officer on or about July 2, procuring ammunition without a permit between January 1, 1963, and August 22, 1966, and being in possession of firearms for a period longer than one month while not being the registered owner, on August 22 An order for confiscation of three pistols and the ammunition was made.

Sergeant Townshend said that when a search warrant was executed on the home of defendant on August 22, 17 firearms and a large quantity of ammunition were found in his room. Woods was only able to produce permits for three of these weapons. Included among the weapons was a semi-automatic pistol, the possession of which was illegal, said Sergeant Townshend. Mr Polson said that Woods had an ambition to be a gunsmith ,and had a genuine and well-founded interest in guns. He had set out to put together a collection at considerable cost, and some of the guns verged on being antique weapons. The value of the collection was between £lOO and £2OO, if not more, Mr Polson said. There was no evidence whatsoever of any sinister intent In having these weapons, he said. The Magistrate said that the offences were serious. He was not prepared to encourage the unlawful collection of weapons. SUSPENDED SENTENCE Pleading guilty to four charges of theft of goods of a total value of £1 15s Id, from Self Help, Ltd., McKenzies (N.Z.), Ltd., Wardell-sKincaids, Ltd., and New Zealand Farmers' Co-operative Association, all on July 1, Ngaire Zora Childs, aged 44, a housewife (Mr R. F. B. Perry), was convicted and ordered to come up for sentence if called on within six months, on the condition that she enter Sunnyside Hospital as a voluntary patient. STOLE MILK SHAKE CONTAINERS Carl Kenneth Bonniface, 17, unemployed .and Jeanette Mary Godsave, aged 17, were each fined £3 on charges of stealing milk shake containers, valued at 7s 6d, the property of Cyril Charles Wood, on August 12. They- pleaded guilty. UNFIT TO PtEAD Raymond Marie Paul Gerard Van Der Heyde, aged 34, a millhand (Mr D. H, Hicks), was found unfit to plead to a charge of threatening to kill on July 27,.and was ordered to be kept in custody at Sunnyside Hos-

pital until the pleasure of the Minister of Justice was known. The order was made under the provisionsof section 32 of the Mental Health Act. TRAFFIC CHARGES Arthur Robert Hines, aged 24, a butcher, was fined £2O and had his driver’s licence cancelled for six months on a charge of failing to stop after an accident and was fined £lO on a charge of failing to ascertain if anyone had been injured. He pleaded guilty to both charges. The offences occurred about 1.-30 a.m. on August 28 at the corner of Cambridge terrace and Fitzgerald avenue. Mr R. G. Blunt, for Hines, said the accused made the decision to drive on, on the spur of the moment and went to the police before he knew they were looking for him. NAME SUPPRESSED Appearing for sentence on two charges of theft as a servant, on August 2 and August 10, a woman whose name was suppressed (Mr A. B. Harman), was convicted and placed on probation for 18 months, with the special condition that she take such medical treatment as directed. INSULTING WORDS Charged with using insulting words in Oxford terrace on August 26, Noel Te Ara Marsh, aged 18, a glass beveller. was convicted and fined £4. He pleaded guilty. TRESPASS Charged with trespassing on the Riccarton racecourse on August 13, Werlta Tainui, aged 20, a labourer, was convicted and fined £3. He pleaded guilty by letter. REMANDED IN CUSTODY Appearing on six charges of false pretences and one of credit by fraud between June 24 and August 26, involving a total of £l3O 18s 6d, Desmond Leon Fitzgerald, aged 36, an unemployed steward, was convicted and remanded in custody to September 8 for a report and sentence. He pleaded guilty to all the charges. TWO CHARGES Charged with breaking and entering a flat at 269 Kilmore street, between August 20 and August 21, and theft of two bags of coal valued at £1 on August 20, Allan John Palmer, aged 22, unemployed, was convicted and remanded on bail to September 8 for a report and sentence. He pleaded guilty. RECEIVING Charged with receiving goods valued at £7 5s from persons unknown, knowing them to be stolen, at Lyttelton on August 20, John Richard Leslie Morrison, aged 19, an unemployed workman (Mr W. S. Smith), was convicted and remanded on bail to September 8 for a report and sentence. He pleaded guilty. IDLE AND DISORDERLY Charged with being idle and disorderly on August 31 in that he had Insufficient lawful means of support, Peter Waltho, aged 19, unemployed, was convicted and remanded in custody to September 8 for a report and sentence. He pleaded guilty. ; (Before Mr H. J. Evans, S.M.) OBSCENE LANGUAGE Richard Parle, aged 21, a milil- . man (Mr L. M. O’Reilly) was , convicted and fined £2O and witi nesses’ expenses, £2, on a . charge of using obscene langu- . age in a public place. He plead- : ed not guilty. DISMISSED A charge against Leslie Mai--1 colm Muir, aged 34, a contrac- ■ tor (Mr R. G. Blunt), of careless ! driving on Hampshire street on i January 22, was dismissed. He ! pleaded not guilty. NO TAX RETURN Terence George Phillips was ’ convicted and fined £2 10s for i failing to file an income tax i return for the year ending I March 31, 1964. 1 NO BUILDING PERMIT i St. Albans Court, Ltd., was I convicted on three charges of . erecting a garage without a perl mit, erecting a garage with . greater span than the maximum ; permitted, and building too t close to a boundary. The com- . pany was fined £2 10s on each charge. CHARGE DISMISSED A charge of failing to give , way at a pedestrian crossing in r Oxford terrace on June 19 i against Mabel Popple, aged 85, a pensioner (Mr G. W. Rountree) was dismissed. She pleaded not guilty. ■ MISCELLANEOUS PROSECUTIONS Breach of Noxious Weeds Act: Stanley David Henderson, £10; I Matheus Hendrlcus Van Der Erf, i £4. ; Failing to ensure child's ats tendance at school: Richard ’ Blair, £l. I Carrying an over-width load: • Port Carriers, Ltd., £7.