FOUND WITH OPIUM
INDIAN FRUITERER FINED £25,
When Harau Gopal, an Indian fruiterer, landed in Wellington yesterday by the Marama, he told a Customs officer that he had nothing to declare, but when his baggage was searched the officer found four and a half pounds of solid opium, valued at £250, concealed in a pillow. Gopal pleaded guilty in the Magistrate's Court to-day to a charge of being in possession of prohibited goods.
"It is not the ordinary kind of opium lined by Chinamen," said Mr. E. T. W. Maclaurin, Collector of Customs, who prosecuted. "These Tndians who arrive in the country are bringing large quantities of opium. We know we only get some of it, but if they get one lot like that through, they make a great profit." Mr. W. G. Riddell, to the accused: "For this offence you are liable to a fine of £100. You will be fined £25, in default six weeks' imprisonment,"
On a similar charge, Vasan Bhikha, another Indian, was remanded to appear tomorrow morning.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19260721.2.69
Bibliographic details
Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 18, 21 July 1926, Page 10
Word Count
172FOUND WITH OPIUM Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 18, 21 July 1926, Page 10
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Evening Post. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.
Log in