Town Hall burglary ’an inside job’

Press, 20 July 1979, Page 18

Town Hall burglary ’an inside job’

The courts

The burglary of the Town Hal! in which a large heavy tare was stolen was an “intide job” as the burglars were let into the building by e cleaner who had a key, Mr Justice Casey and a jury were told in the Supreme Court yesterday. Selwyn Warren Waaka, aged 27, unemployed, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of burglary involving the Town Hall and a Railways Department shed In Matipo Street. Mr D. J. L. Saunders appears for the Crown and Mr R. B. Leete for Waaka. His Honour will sum up this morning. Opening his case Mr Saunders said that in the early hours of Sunday, May 6, the safe in the restaurant area of the Town Hall was stolen. When the burglary was discovered next morning detectives found that there was no sign of a forced entry. Inquiries subsequently led to the arrest of John Daniel Douglas, a cleaner employed at the Town Hall. He admitted that he and two other men entered the building by using his key. A trolley from the auditorium was used to wheel the i safe out to a waiting car,} end it was taken to a house i In Barbadoes Street where an attempt was made toi open it. They were unable to! force the safe after working) on it for some time.

On the Monday night a welding shed belonging to the Railways Department in Matipo Street, was broken into and gas cutting equipment stolen. The Crown alleged that Waaka was present and was a party to the burglary of both the Town Hall and the Railways shed.

Douglas was interviewed early on Tuesday, May 8, and the premises in Barbadoes Street were searched by a squad of detectives. Waaka and another man were found hiding under a mattress in a bedroom. Another man was found hiding in the roof. The safe stolen from the Town Hall was concealed under a blanket in the lounge where the cutting equipment stolen from the Railways Department was also found. The safe was marked by the unsuccessful attempts to open it with the equipment. Four detectives were unable to lift the safe and they had to obtain the assistance of a tow truck to remove it from the house. It; took two men to lift the gas-cutting equipment. At the Central Police Sta-i tion Waaka claimed that he had committed the burglar-; ies on both the Town Hall and the Railways shed and that he had done them on his own. When asked by Detective! G. F. Scott how he had got!

the safe out of the Town Hall on his own Waaka had replied: “Trolley — it was easy — just like chucking I bananas around if you know how to carry the weight.’’ The Crown would call 12 witnesses, Mr Saunders said. Waaka said in evidence that he lived in Ashburton with his de facto wife and he did not come to Christchurch until about mid-day on Monday, May 12, “to have a look around.” He went to the Dominion Hotel w-here he was told he could stay with Terrance Carl Finch in Barbadoes Street. When he w-ent to that address in the evening he | was drunk and went to (sleep. That was the night ! the Railways shed was burgled. He had nothing to do with that burglary or the one at the Town Hall. Asked why he had told Detective Scott that he had (done both burglaries on his i own Waaka replied: “I was I going away on some other ! charges and I thought I [would take the rap for the other boys. I was only joking.” Waaka denied that he was) hiding under a mattress[ when the police arrived. i Terrance Carl Finch, a prison inmate, said that he. was serving a two-year sen-1 tence for the burglarv of the: Town Hall and the Railwavs; shed. Waaka had nothing to i do with either burglary. i The case will finish today.