JUVENILE GANGSTERS

Greymouth Evening Star, 19 July 1939, Page 4

JUVENILE GANGSTERS

CONVERSION, THEFT, MISCHIEF. [FEB PBESB ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON, July 18. “The damage to telephones in the Hutt district by some of these youths resulted in the district being without a telephone that could be used by the public,” said Detective-Sergeant P. Doyle in the Children’s Court at WelI lington to-day when nine youths were charged with the unlawful conversion of motor-cars, theft, and mischief. The motor-cars converted were valued at £4745, and the damage to them was £156/10/-. The damage to telephone boxes was £454/7/1, the cash stolen totalled £l9/17/4, and the cash recovered amounted to £4/9/-, said De-tective-Sergeant Doyle. Mr J. L. Stout, I S.M., and Mrs A. McVicar and Mr G. L. Stewart, associates of the Children’s Court, were on the Bench. The depredations would have been brought to a close earlier if the youths had not adopted cunning tactics by using stolen number-plates, said Detec-tive-Sergeant Doyle. The charges were: —Against a youth aged 19, 16 of unlawful conversion, 40 of theft, and 14 of mischief; against a youth aged 19 one of unlawful conversion and two of theft; against a youth aged 18, three of unlawful conversion and two of theft; against a youth aged 18, two of unlawful conversion, 14 of theft, and two of mischief; against a youth aged 17, five of unlawful conversion; against a boy aged 16, 16 of, unlawful conversion, 27 of theft, and three of mischief; against a youth aged 16, seven of unlawful conversion, 21 of theft, and one of mischief; against a boy aged 15, 14 of unlawful conversion, 28 of theft, and 14 of mischief; against a boy aged 15, five of unlawful conversion, and two of theft.

The youth with the big list was committed to a Borstal institution for | three years, two were placed on probation for three years with a condition ; that they must not own or drive a 'motor-vehicle during their probation: I another was placed on probation for I two years with the same condition, and I a fifth was placed on probation for 18 I months. The four youngest were comI mitted to the care of the SuperintendI ent of the Child Welfare Department. DOCTORS’ CARS TAKEN. After detailing the charges Detec-tive-Sergeant Doyle said that in four cases the motor-cars stolen were the property of doctors, and in one case a doctor had been deprived of the use of his car for about two weeks while repairs were made. Through changing the number-plates of motor-cars recovery had been delayed till the theft of the plates had been reported to the police, and in some cases the owners had been deprived of the use of their vehicles for periods approaching a week and in other cases longer. It was I also apparent from the condition of' the cars that they had been driven at' great speed. j

| The Post and Telegraph Department : was not in a position to replace the ■ boxes, so that the inconvenience caused to the Department was considerable, i said Detective-Sergeant Doyle referI ring to the damage to the telephone

boxes in Hutt Valley. A staff of detectives was engaged night and day for at least a fortnight endeavouring to detect the offenders. When finally interviewed some of the youths frankly admitted to Detective J. G. Long that they knew the police cars and in some cases the numbers of the cars. That was why they evaded detection for so long. The youths belonged to a gang that operated in one particular district. Most of them lived in one district and were constantly associating with each other for a considerable period. All the juveniles had been under supervision before and seemed to have treated it as a kind of joke, said the S.M., in committing the four youngest offenders to the care of the Superintendent of the Child Welfare Department. Two of them had previously been connected with car conversions and must have realised the seriousness, of that charge. People had to be protected from their raids. The youth with the biggest list had been given a chance before and must have committed the offences with his eyes open. He must have realised the seriousness of car conversion and of the damage to other people’s property. He was the worst offender of the nine.

“This is really the most serious list I have ever had to deal with in the Children’s Court, and I trust it will be a long time before anything similar comes before the Court,” said the S.M.