FOUR BAD BOYS

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 119, 13 February 1926, Page 9

FOUR BAD BOYS

“AN AWFUL STATE OF AFFAIRS” .

Br I ci-Boraph — I’ress Association

Ashburton, February 12.

“This is an awful state of affairs that in a small community like Ashburton offences of this kind have been committed almost with impunity,” said Mr. Mosley, S.M., when hearing 28 charges of damage, - theft, ‘ and breaking and entering against four lads, whose ages range from fourteen to sixteen, who appeared at the Juvenile Court to-day. The police stated that a day book stolen from a store contained statements of debts totalling over a hundred pounds had not been recovered.

The Magistrate reduced charges to simple theft. The probation officer said that the mother of one of the boys had come across a letter from the ringleader of the gang, in which that he was going to become a “master cracksman.” It was stated that the ringleader, who had been committed to the Borstal Institute last week, had threatened one of the offenders with violence if he information to the police. ’ One boy elected to take a thrashing instead of “going away.” The others were ordered eight strokes of the birch, placed on two years’ probation, and ordered to make restitution for the goods not recovered.