No case against officer

Press, 29 March 1980, Page 4

No case against officer

' A Paparua Prison officer, Alister David Hogue, aged: 30, Will not have to stand trial jin the Supreme-Court oh a charge of possessing a drug I for supply. ’ | The defendant, in the Mag-' listrate’s Court yesterday had ! pleaded not guilty and'elect-' led trial by jury on a charge |of possessing a class C drug, i cannabis plant, for supply on j October. 25. las’t.’ year; j The charge related to his (allegedly collecting a bag. of I toiletries from a woman friend of Ronald JorIgenson,. a prison inmate, to i deliver to Jorgenson. .

■: The defendant, a detective said, told his wife after being apprehended outside the woman’s house, that he had been ; . “set up,” had denied knowledge' of a package which was' also in the bag. This contained - 4.8 g of cannabis.., ..... :•

[;t, ■■After ; hearing depositions of‘-evidence, of >. six ,‘prbsecutiorij ivitriesses, arid r submis-. .By tfie .deferidarit’S. counsel (Mr D. C. Fitzgibbon) Messrs J. C. Cottrell "arid J. .A. Heridrie. Justices' of the 'Peace, held there was not

sufficient evidence to put the defendant on trial.

1 They discharged.the defendant on that charge. On a further charge of taking out of Paparua Prison four letters on behalf of Jorgenson, a prison inmate, between September 7 and October 23, he was remanded at ■ large, to appear in the Magistrates Court on April .14., ■No plea was taken. j Sergeant M. P. Caldwell (prosecuted at yesterday’s ■hearing. _

1 After ' completion of the ' prosecution case: Mt Fitzgibbon called no evidence for the (defence but submitted there I was no case to answer to the charge. .-■, He said that the principal witness, Mrs Carol Frees, was clearly an accomplice, and had been involved for at least 12 weeks “with guilty knowledge.-” .. ", '

, Hef said her evidence was ,'hot-drily highly, suspect but ,\yas also uncorroborated evidence of a “self 7 admitted ac.cornplice.” . The J.P.s 'in:discharging the defendant, said there were elements in respect of, Mrs Frees’ evidence which left

them in considerable doubt. : and this must, be resolved in’ the defendant’s favour. In her’evidence Mi's Frees said she had became friendly! with Jorgenson ' through a> mutual interest in art. On a visit to him and she had been asked by-another! prisoner to meet a man, call-j ed “Jacko,” who could sup-| ply drugs. — ' -< J She did hot wish to get in-; vdlved,.,so spoke to an alcoholic’s - adviser ’who . visited the. prison, and he advised her> to have (nothing to de. with 'it. ; ‘ \ When this prisoner had made the request for help she accepted it, - because there was a group of them sitting together dhd the girl in the group did not want to take any more packages into the prison because she was worried." • ,? •

Mrs Frees -said Jorgenson referred to. (the defendant as “Ar,* v ;jan<i fused the term; “greasy' wboll’fin J -his-letters,; which she • believed.! was al code name-for marijuana. ■;'■>. She gave evidence of receiving two packages ' atintervals, at her house, delivered by different men. Before oqe package, arrived she received,' a "g'feas'y wool” letter from Jorgenson. ■ Instructions w.ith ,a package were to ; telephone the and tell ’’him the “greasy y'ool” had arrived. Mrs Frees said she was concerned about (her • involvement when the second parcel arrived, and she kept

it for a week and then notified the police. (They ■ arranged that she should carry on .with delivery of the package, and she telephoned the defendant. j She -said the defendant! telephoned back and said he( would call with his wife, but; as she knew nothing about! it. he asked that the witness: (place the package in a bag, of .soap and toiletries for; Jorgenson. Detective D. B. Clearwater said that, when questioned after -leaving Mrs Frees’j house, ' the . defendant said; the bag was- for Jorgenson.; Shown the package he said( he had not seen it before arid did • not know what it; contained.- ' - ■ . : I He told the detective Mrs ( Frees had asked -he pick up the bag. He - was going to, deliver it to. do her (a favour.! He made it his business to;

with the prisoners. i In a statement-!; produced by Detective. Clearwater the; defendant allegedly.,said Jor-; genson had asked him to see! (Mrs -Frees.... as she was a I solo feother and had justj shifted to Christchurch. [ He left her his telephone 'number in case she wanted heln. He, had been asked to deliver Some? - items to Jorgenson because she was not able to visit. The statement . said the defendant did not. know there were any drugs in the bag. As for far as he was concerned it contained soap and toiletries.