YOUTHS ARRAIGNED.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIX, Issue 195, 19 July 1939, Page 9

YOUTHS ARRAIGNED.

LONG LIST OF CHARGES. ESCAPADES AT WELLINGTON. Per Press 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 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 10s 9d. The damage to the telephone boxes was £454 7s Id. and the cash stolen totalled £l9 17s 4d ; the cash recovered amounted to £4 9s, said Mr. Doyle. Mr. J. L. Stout, S.M., and Mrs. A. McYicar 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 the detective-sergeant. 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 boy 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 the Borstal Institution for three years. Two were placed on probation for three years with the condition that they must not own or drive a motor-vehicle during their probat;on. Another was placed on probation for two years with the same condition, and a fifth was placed on probation for 18 mouths. The four youngest were committed to the care of the superintendent of the Child Welfare Department. DOCTORS’ PROPERTY.

After detailing the charges, tho de-tective-sergeant said that in four cases the motor-cars stolen were the property of doctors, and in one case a doctor bad 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 stolon plates had been reported to tho police, and in some cases owners had been deprived of the use of their vehicles for periods approaching a week and in other cases longer. It was also apparent from the condition of the cars that they had been driven at great speed. The Post and Telegraph Department was not in a position to replace the boxes, so that the inconvenience caused to tho department was considerable, said the detective-sergeant, relerring to tho damage to the telephone boxes in Hutt \ alley, also. A staff of detectives was engaged night and day for at least a fortnight endeavouring to detect tho 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 d considerable period. All the juveniles had been under supervision before and seemed to have treated it as a kind of joke, said Mr Stout, in committing the four youngest offenders to the care of the superintendent of the Child Welfare Department. Two of them bad previously been connected with car conversions and must have realised the seriousness or that charge. People had to be protected from their raids. The youth with the biggest list find been given a chance before, and must have committed the offences with his eyes open, said Mr Stout. He must have realised the seriousness of car conversion and of the damage to other people’s property. He was the worst offender of tlie 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 conies° before the Court,” said Mr Stout