COURT NEWS

Grey River Argus, 7 April 1943, Page 6

COURT NEWS

Assault by Maori Soldiers ON AMERICAN SOLDIER WELLINGTON, April 6. Two Maori soldiers, who were, parties to an assault with a bottle on an American soldier, were sentenced by Mr Justice Johnston in the Supreme Court to 12 months’ hard labour. They were Kerenma Te Wao, 25. and Robert John Kokiri, 23. and they had pleaded guilty at Otaki. The Judge said he held the men equally guilty, though Te Wao actually struck the American and took his money. He said that the reason, the military authorities did noti make an application to deal with the accused was that men of their character were a source of weakness and not strength in any force.

THEFT OF 2280 PACKING CASES. WELLINGTON, April 6. William George Hayden was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment for the theft of 2280 packing cases valued at £399. He was a driver for a carrying firm which worked for Woolworth’s. .Between April, 1941, and February, 1943, he called on Hannah and Co. on 174 occasions and sold them cases which he had collected at the railway station for return to Woolworth’s. Counsel for the defence suggested that the case was one for a psychologist and was the result of the depression when Hayden was on relief for six years. The storeman at Hannah’s who received 79 of the cases knowing that they were stolen was admitted to probation for 12 months. The defence counsel said he had been instructed to buy cases whereever he could and, learning that Hayden had cases for sale, he bought them, but only in the last few months suspected that they were stolen.