HEAVY FINES

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 60, 8 September 1938, Page 10

HEAVY FINES

AN OPIUM RAID

CHINESE BEFORE COURT

Fourteen bamboo opium pipes, some elaborately mounted with silver, formed part of the exhibits in the Magistrate's Court today when a number of Chinese appeared before Mr. J. L. Stout, S.M., as a result of a police raid carried out in Haining Street late last night. Ah Show, a laundryman, aged 44, pleaded guilty to permitting premises in Haining Street, of which he was the occupier, to be used for the smoking of opium. Twelve other Chinese pleaded guilty to being found without lawful excuse on premises used for the smoking of opium. They were Ah Young, gardener, aged 38; Ah Sui, laundryman, 41; Ah Joe, gardener, 30; Low Gee Leong, gardener, 63; Ah Poo, gardener, 42; Chau Sing, greengrocer, 21; Ah Yen, 33; Sue Sun, greengrocer, 47; Ngan Jack, greengrocer, 40; Joe Tong Shing, greengrocer, 52; Arthur Lee, traveller, 30; and Ah Woon, gardener, 38.

Sub-Inspector J. A. Dempsey, prosecuting, said that at about 11.45 o'clock last , night Sergeant Brown and others visited premises in Haining Street. The premises were two-storeyed, there was only one bed in the place, and the premises had been visited by the police over a long period. "The only use we have eVer known it to be put to is for the purpose of smoking opium," he said. '

One of two rooms upstairs, said SubInspector Dempsey, was fitted with the usual platform on which the Chinese lay with head-rests, and at the time of the police visit six lamps were burning, and two were not alight. The room smelt strongly of opium. From the premises I' 4 pipes, a set of scales, four eggcups in which opium was usually kept, and six tins of prepared opium were removed, the tins having been opened, in addition to four small tins containing opium and a small quantity of "seconds." The men were on the premises at the time of the raid. The sub-inspector related to the Court the previous convictions of the accused, who had all been before the Court previously, with the exception of Ah Poo, Chau Sing, and Arthur Lee.

All Show was convicted and fined £50, in default two months' imprisonment; Ah Joe was convicted and fined £50, in default twoi months' imprisonment, Low Gee Leong, £40, in default six weeks; Ah Yen, £30, in default one month; Ah Sui, £20, in default one month; Ah Young, Sue Sun, Ngan Jack, Joe Tong Shing, and Ah Woon were fined £15, in default 21 days; and Ah Poo, Chau Sing, and Arthur Lee were fined £12 10s, in default 14 days.

All were allowed until the end of the month to pay their fines.