ADJACENT 'PHONE NUMBER

Evening Star, Issue 25472, 1 May 1945, Page 4

ADJACENT 'PHONE NUMBER

MAGISTRATE ASKED TO TAKE BETS

(P.A.) NELSON, April 30. Pleading guilty to a charge of carrying on the business of a bookmaker, Maurice Vivyan Maxwell was fined £250 by Mr T. E. Maunsell S.M., to-day. Detective-sergeant Hayhurst said that on Saturday morning a visit was pain, to the" accused's home, and in a period of 50 minutes 40 bets for over £2OO were taken. Counsel stressed that Maxwell was not engaged in large-scale bookmaking. Bets were taken on the telephone from special clients. The Magistrate: Are you prepared to produce his bank book? Detective-sergeant Hayhurst said he was not prepared 'to accept counsel's statement.

The Magistrate said he would take into account that the accused was not in robust health, and would not impose a term of imprisonment: In passing, he would say that he knew from his own personal knowledge that' the accused was apparently engaged in the business of a bookmaker, as his (the magistrate's) telephone number was next to the accused's in the directory, and some customers had evidently got the numbers mixed and had telephoned His Worship, asking him to take bets.