THE CRIMINAL SESSIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18087, 11 May 1922, Page 9

THE CRIMINAL SESSIONS.

ALLEGED THEFT AS SERVANT.

ACCUSED FOUND NOT GUILTY

CHARGE AGAINST SALESMAN.

The criminal sessions of the Auckland Supreme Court were continued yesterday. The cases reported below were heard before Mr. Justice Her dm an. Mr. S. L. Patterson appeared for the Crown. A salesman, Charles Avery Ashwin par. Moody) was indicted on two counts, theft a.nd attempted theft as a servant of 3ijyds. of garbadine am? 4yds. of dowlas, valued at £4 8s 6d, from the Farmers' Union Trading Co.

Mr. Patterson said that cm February 22 the accused was noticed by a shop-walker to put a parcel under the counter and shift it along to another counter where he was serving a customer. The woman took the parcel, but was intercepted at the door, and questional regarding a receipt docket. She said her husband had bought the goods the previous day and she was collecting the parcel. Accused then supported her statement, but no trace could be found of the alleged cash sale in his books. When questioned by the assistant general manager accused said a resident of Whakatane had ordered the goods and the woman, his sister-in-law, had called for them. The order from the resident mentioned, however, was found to bo totally different. Accused then said He would not his first story and offered to pay for the goods, pleading for another chanoo. When charged by the police he made a statement that he made up the parcel on a telephone order for a man whoso wife came in the following day, but did not know the goods had been ordered. The defence was that the order had been taken from the man last mentioned, who did not tell his wife, as it was a birthday present for her. Accused knew that he would call and pay for the goods. Mr. Moody commented upon the fact that the detective who interviewed the man and his wife evidently was satisfied the order was genuine, as he had laid no charge of conspiracy against them. The jury returned a verdict of not .guilty.