Man fined $1000 for receiving stolen tools

Press, 21 May 1987, Page 4

Man fined $1000 for receiving stolen tools

A fine of $lOOO was imposed in the District Court yesterday , on Jason Paul Sherwood, aged 24, a contractor, for having unlawfully received $lO,OOO worth of engineers’ tools on April 10.

Sherwood appeared for sentence after having earlier admitted the offence. The tools had been stolen by two men in a burglary of the premises of Bayliss Engineering, in Battersea Street, according to the police summary relating to the charge. Sherwood subsequently had bought them for $lOOO.

His counsel, Mr P. G. Costelloe, submitted yesterday in mitigation of penalty that Sherwood had not at first suspected anything unusual about the offer to purchase the tools, as the man who offered them was an en-

gineer. He later became suspicious because of the price; but succumbed to the temptation to keep them. He had paid $lOOO for the tools, and had now lost this sum. He had assisted the police in recovering the tools and no loss had occurred to the owner.

Judge Toomey noted that Sherwood was a conscientious and hard worker, and a valued employee. It was regrettable that he had blemished the good record he had created over the last eight years. $7OOO FRAUDS A woman who was due to appear for sentence yesterday on 64 counts of fraud involving more than $7OOO failed to appear and a warrant was issued for her arrest.

Katrina Gillespie, aged 17, had been on bail

awaiting sentence after pleading guilty to the 64 offences. They arose from her operation of three cheque accounts and a credit card between December, 1985, Bind February this year to buy goods valued in total at $7270. The offences occurred in Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin.

The police statement relating to the offences was that all the accounts were overdrawn and Gillespie admitted to the police that she had realised that. Some of the property had been recovered but reparation of $5368 was sought. JAIL FOR BURGLARY Eight months jail was imposed on Russell John Mora, aged 19, on a charge of burglary of Kerr’s Trading, at Burnham, on March 30. He was also jailed for

two months, to be served concurrently, for committing a breach of a periodic detention order imposed in January for previous offences. Mora appeared for sentence.

Counsel, Mr David Stringer, said Mora was younger than an accomplice who had been given a nine-month jail term. Mora realised his alcohol Mora realised his alcohol Mora realised his alcohol problem, and had taken initial steps towards overcoming this. He hoped to travel to Australia for work, and this would take him away from associates who had led him into trouble. Mora was passive and easily led.

The Judge said the burglary was committed while Mora should have been serving the sentence of periodic detention for previous offences.