TV retailer fined $115

Press, 8 December 1976, Page 4

TV retailer fined $115

Magistrates Court

Ashley Michael Keith, a ; retailer of electrical goods at a well-known Christchurch television and music systems shop, pleaded guilty ’in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday to four charges of importing 122 radios and players worth more than S2OOO into the country without an import I licence. Keith was fined a total of slls by Mr H. J. Evans, S.M, Under the terms of the. Trade and Industry Act and I the Import Control Regulations, Keith was liable for fines totalling SB7OB on all ifour charges. Many of the radios and cassettes, which were all :

declared at Customs, were 'said to be gifts for Keith's ’ family, but they were later found to have been sold in his shop. Mr D. J. L. Saunders, for the Crown, told the Court that Keith had no licence for importing the radios and would not have received one because of the import controls imposed by the Government. Bringing the items in through Customs after an overseas trip was one way of slipping through these, controls, he said. In August, 1975, on his i way back into New Zealand; from Australia, Keith: brought in a Mickey Mouse: radio, which he declared asi

ejbeing for his own use. buti sj which was later sold in his r'shop. Mr Saunders said. The i radio was worth $56 in New Zealand. , . . r In October. 1975, Keith tibrought in three radio-cas-r sette players and two small p 11 radios on his return from ? Fiji. One of the cassette i players was returned to Fiji i •ifor repairs, and the two ' ; small radios which he said i i: were for his own use. were < sold in his shop. •j Six radios, worth $1348, i were brought in by Keith on i , return from another trip to ! Fiji a month later. Of these. s I two were sold in his shop. I The next day, a parcel of ; - 113 radios and radio cassettes, it

.worth SBBB. arrived at the Customs parcel post from Fiji addressed to Keith They were part of a shipment of 18, 13 of which were to be sold in Keith’s shop and five of which were gifts, said Mr 'Saunders. Counsel for Keith said that his client was a respected businessman m Christchurch. He realised the consequences of what he had done now, but at the time he had not. He was very upset and embarrassed about it. All the radios and cassettes, worth a total of $2218, are forfeited to the Crown.