Rental car man to face trial by jury on theft, bribe counts

Press, 25 August 1988, Page 13

Rental car man to face trial by jury on theft, bribe counts

A former employee of a rental car firm will face trial by jury in the District Court on eight charges which include theft of four rental vehicles worth $53,000, and making a bribe to police officers investigating the complaints. After a preliminary hearing in the District Court yesterday Messrs C. W. Crawford and J. D. Pansing, Justices of the Peace, committed the defendant, Paul Edward Baynes, aged 25, a shop assistant, for trial on the eight charges. He was remanded on bail pending a date for his trial.

The charges Baynes faced were of theft while employed by Budget Rent-a-Car of cars belonging to that company, worth $14,000 and $17,000, on February 4 and March 5, theft of a car worth $20,000, and another

worth $12,000, both from Tasman Rental Cars, Ltd, on March 24 and February 6; theft from Budget of property worth $1382.50, between January 1, 1986, and March 22 this year, theft of a wallet, driver’s licence and keys worth $445 from another car, offering a bribe of $5OOO to three police officers on May 8, and wilfully attempting to pervert the course of justice by making threats to Tasman Rental Cars, Ltd, on May 11. Statements of evidence of prosecution witnesses were accepted by defence counsel, Mr S. C. Barker, for the preliminary hear-

ing, without the witnesses having to attend the hearing. Their statements were not read to the Court. Mr Barker reserved the defence. Sergeant W. P. Creasy prosecuted.

A police summary relating to the alleged offences showed that Baynes had been employed by Budget Rent-a-Car in Queenstown and Christchurch from August 15, 1986, until March 22 this year. The summary detailed the alleged rental car thefts. Some were said to have involved the removal of number plates and chassis and engine numbers. The engine of one car was said to have been replaced. The charge of offering a bribe of $5OOO to three police officers related to Baynes allegedly offering them this sum when they were investigating the matters at his property; and the charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice to Baynes’s allegedly telephoning a rentai-car company and making a threat unless charges against him were withdrawn.