Burglars caught in act by police

Press, 7 August 1976, Page 5

Burglars caught in act by police

After receiving a tip that a bakery was to be burgled, detectives obtained the keys from the proprietor, and when they entered the premises they found the burglars already on the job, hacking off the back of the safe, Mr Justice Casey was told in the Supreme Court yesterday. Maxwell Robert Blacktop, aged 21, Hamish Keith McDougall, aged 22, and James Alfter Fowler, aged 20, were gaoled for 18 months on a charge of burglary. The three prisoners had pleaded guilty after the taking of depositions to burglary of the premises of Home Bakery, Ltd, on July 21. Evidence was given in the Magistrate’s Court that when the detectives arrived at the premises of Home Bakery, Ltd, late on the evening of July 21 Fowler was apprehended on the ground floor while he was acting as lookout. In the small office upstairs McDougall and Fowler were found working on the safe which was lying face down on the floor. McDougall was levering open the back of the safe, while Blacktop was swinging an axe into it. The safe was badly damaged.

Mr D. H. Stringer, fori Fowler, said that the offence had not been planned by his! client, who had played a very minor part in it, acting as lookout. If it had not been for a casual encounter with the other two prisoners the same evening he would not have been involved. He was about to get married and needed the money.

It was obvious that the burglary had been doomed to failure from the start, because someone had talked, Fowler had been convicted for burglary in November, 1975, but the probation officer had described him as a good-natured young man who had bad judgment and was prone to associate with bad company, Mr Stringer said.

Mr E. T. Higgins, for Blacktop, said that in February, 1975, his client had been sentenced to detention centre training and since then had kept out of trouble until the present offence. In 1974 he had had a number of convictions, but recently he had not appeared in court.

After leaving school Blacktop had wanted to join the Navy, and when rejected had lost all hope for a time. His de facto wife was ex-

meeting his child. He had [spent two week* in custody, Mr Higgins said.

Mr M. S. Gibson, for McDougall, said that this was his first offence of this type. McDougall’s de facto wife had left their flat taking $5O with her and leaving him almost destitute. He had tried to get a loan without success, so he was very susceptible to his companions’ suggestion. The probation officer said that McDougall was a skilled worker with excellent prospects, but needed a stable environment. The offence had been committed three weeks after he had left home to go flatting. It was out of character, Mr Gibson said.

His Honour said that the three prisoners would know how seriously Courts regarded safebreaking and burglary in general. All had much the same background and had appeared in court for undisciplined behaviour and two for offences of petty dishonesty, for which they had received lenient sentences.

“I cannot distinguish between the three of you, who formed a common plan to burgle the shop and were caught red-handed while attempting to get into the safe,” said his Honour.