CAR CONVERSION

Dominion, Volume 33, Issue 282, 23 August 1940, Page 12

CAR CONVERSION

Reformative Detention For Two Men (By Telegraph—-Press Association.) AUCKLAND, August 22. Oswald Oliver Wahrlich, aged. 21, and Colin Vivian Symons, aged 20, came before Mr. Justice Blair in the Supreme Court today for sentence, on a chtrrge of unlawful conversion of a motor-car ami on a charge of reckless driving and causing injury. Wahrlich told the judge that they intended leaving Wellington by the steamer express for Lyttellon, where he wanted to see a young woman, but they found the wharf picketed. They look a car ami drove io Palmerston North, intending to take a plane to Christchurch, but found they bad insufficient money. On a further mad impulse, they drove to Auckland. A plain clothes constable accosted them, and he was on the car step guiding them to the police station when the car accidentally hit. a safety zone, knocking the constable off. They then drove the car away in a panic. The judge said that both previouslyhad been in trouble in connexion with, conversion of cars aud both had been sentenced to two years’ Borstal- He was unable to accept Wahrlich’s assurance that it was an accident that caused injury to the constable. While Wahrlich doubtless did not intend to injure the constable, it seemed certain he intended to “scrape him off the car with the safety zone,” and was reckless about causing injury. It was a very serious act. Wahrlich was sentenced to 18 months reformative detention for reckless driving and a further 18 months’ reformative detention for conversion of the car and the theft of benzine. Symons was sentenced to 18 months’ reformative detention.