Stolen credit cards used

Press, 12 October 1988, Page 32

Stolen credit cards used

Goods, services, and cash, totalling $122,990, were fraudulently obtained by the use of credit cards stolen from the Christchurch postal centre between May and September, said Detective-Ser-geant Ray Homan in the District Court yesterday. Douglas Grant, aged 26, a postal assistant (Miss C. M. Risk), admitted using five stolen cards on 23 occasions to obtain cash advances totalling $15,299. When spoken to by police, the defendant said he used the money to pay for temgesic drugs to which he was addicted, said Sergeant Homan. Grant said he, and two other persons involved, took only small amounts, but that these amounts increased as their confidence in the use of the cards grew. The offending came to light as a result of complaints by the issuing card companies about the systematic theft of 55 credit

cards from the Hereford Street postal centre. Sergeant Homan said 889 fraudulent transactions had been made with these cards to obtain cash and goods to a total value of $122,990. Compensation of $15,299 was sought from Grant. He was convicted by Judge Erber, and remanded to October 26 for sentence COMMUNITY SERVICE Interim suppression of the name of a 16-year-old boy earlier convicted in the Children and Young Persons Court of receiv- 1 ing $25,000 in cash — the proceeds of the armed robbery of the Edgeware Postßank — was refused by Judge Erber. Sean Michael Walsh (Mr R. Palmer), was put i on supervision for 12 i months, during which ( time he was ordered to < carry out 125 hours of 1 community service. < The Judge also directed <

that Walsh, until January 1, next year, observe a 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. residential curfew. The offence was serious and could not be passed off lightly, he said. While it may be that the defendant had no knowledge of what was going to happen — in respect of the armed robbery — he had lent his support to what had happened afterwards, said the Judge. Mr Palmer submitted that the alleged co-of-fenders were substantially older than his client. Walsh had helped the police to recover about $17,000 of the stolen money, he said. SIX MONTHS JAIL Six months in prison was the sentence given to a man who was earlier convicted of breaking and entering the North New Brighton Medical Centre and stealing a quantity of drugs.

Peter Geoffrey Whall, aged 29, unemployed (Mr W. Rosenberg), committed the offence on September 11. The Judge said Whall had 23 previous convictions for burglary. On the present offence, in which a large amount of drugs were taken, he would be justified in imposing a prison term of 18 months. INJURY CHARGE Two men charged with injuring Warren Edward Drake were remanded to October 25 without plea. As a condition of bail, Moana Micah Reedy, aged 21, and Wayne George Gordon Lange, aged 28, both unemployed, were each ordered to report three times a week to the police. Steven Allan Shaw, aged 24, a labourer, although in court earlier, did not respond when his name was called and a warrant for his arrest was

issued. Shaw is jointly charged with the other two men on the injury charge, which allegedly involved a person in a car being stabbed after pulling to the side of the road on hearing a siren. DEPOSITIONS Two men facing a joint charge of robbery, and assault, were remanded to the District Court at Rangiora for the taking of depositions on November 29. They are Christopher Barry O’Neill, aged 23, a welder, and Craig Allan Tough, aged 22, a labourer. They are represented by Mr D. J. Taffs. They are jointly charged with robbing Michael Power of a dozen cans of beer, and assaulting Sheldon Aaron Gately with intent to injure him. Tough was remanded in custody. O’Neill was earlier granted bail in the High Court.