Mussel Stealing Charge Dismissed

Northern Advocate, 30 August 1948, Page 3

Mussel Stealing Charge Dismissed

Charged with stealing 17 mussels, valued at 3/-, the property of the Railways Department. Whangerej. Marsh Munro (Mr B. C. Spring), 28. married, truck-driver of Walton Street, appeared before the magistrate (Mr W. C. Harley) at the Whangarei Court this morning. The case was dismissed after Mr Spring had pleaded for leniency and asked that Munro’s name be supressed. Detective-Sergeant J. B. Finlay said the sack of mussels arrived at ’ the railway goods shed in good condition. It was later noticed that the sack had been interfered with, and some mussels removed.

Munro admited taking the mussels which were recovered from his truck. He said, the mussels were lying on the ground and, rather than let them j-ot in the sun he had picked, them up.

“PHENOMENAL SUMS” Detective-Sergeant Finlay said an examination of the sack proved that it had no holes in it and the mussels could not have fallen out. Munro was a reliable worker, with no previous convictions.

“Although the sum involved was trivial, the Railways Department is paying out phenomenal sums yearly because of thieving,” the detective added.

Mr Spring said that if Munro was convicted the department would refuse his admission to the railway yard, pnd, if that happened, Munro would ■lose his job. “We all know what shell-fish mean to a Maori,” he commented. The case was dismissed.