THEFT OF LIQUOR.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 28 June 1926, Page 11

THEFT OF LIQUOR.

LORRY DRIVER. PLEADS GUH/TY. HOTEL LICENSEE ALSO CHARGED (BY TELEGRAPH PRESS, ASSOCIATION.) AUCKLAND, June 28. Horace Vincent Byrne Speight and Michael Keady, licensee of th© Britoniart Hotel, were charged at the •Magistrate’s Court; with breaking and entering the bonded, warehouse of R. D. Nathan mid Co., with intent to commit a crime, and with stealing liquor valued at £77 Is lOd, or, alternatively, with receiving the same liquor. Evidence was given that Speight was a lorry driver in Nathan’s employ, and that the lorry he drove was garaged outside a portion of the bond store on Saturday. June 12. The premises were closed, but Speight was instructed to return the lorry after it had been painted. His duty was; to return the keys to the despatch office. The lorry was garaged at midday, and Speight was the bast man in the premises. Robert Beswick, employed as a Customs locker,- said he had charge of Nathan’s bond store, which he locked up at 11.45 a.m. op Jun e 12. The lorry was not there then. On Monday morning he found the door open and seven cases and five bottles of spirits on the platform on which the trucks were loaded. The bond lock was intact, but one crown lock leading to th c six upper stories had been prized open, and the lift door was wide open. On saking stock, he found that five cases of whisky, one case of gin, one of schnapps, and three cases and nineteen bottles of brandy had been removed. At 6 p.m. on the same day, in company with a detective, he interviewed Keady at the Britonmart Hotel. When told that it was alleged he h'ad( bought stolen liquor, Keady replied, “You won’t find anything here.” The premises were searched. Not a single case of liquor was found, hut in the cellar wtere 83 bottles of brandy and of gin, showing that they had been placed on the shelves recently. In the kitchen were found pieces of a liquor case with bond marks, import marks and numbers belonging to the cases stolen from the bonded store. Thence witness and the detective moved to search Keady’s backyard, where; they found _ a large quantity of broken stone gin bottles in rubbish tins. The hotel porter, questioned, stated he was instructed by Keady to break up the bottles, as they were useless.

Evidence was given by a. driver employed by Nathans, who said he was with Speight on Saturday afternoon, when the latter left him to .speak to Keady. A police -.sergeant on duty on Sunday, June 13, said lie beard hammering in tbe cellar * ofj the Rritamiairt Hotel at 10.14 p.m. and at 11.45 p.m. Speight pleaded guilty and was committed for sentence. Keady pleaded not guilty and re screed 1 bis defence'. He was committed for trial. Each accused was released on bail.