PRISONERS SENTENCED.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19125, 17 September 1925, Page 12

PRISONERS SENTENCED.

OFFENCES BY FIVE MEN. 1 THEFT OF CHOIR FUNDS. : i —— CONDUCTOR SENT TO PRISON. * £§' Five prisoners, who had pleaded guilty in. the Police Court were sentenced in the Supremo. Court yesterday by Mr. Justice Alpers. Reginald Howan, aged 28, (Mr. Cocker) appeared on two charges of theft and two of forgery. Counsel said the sums concerned were comparatively small, being £6 14s and £1 14s respectively. Prisotser was conductor of the Te Awamutu Metho. : i dist Chwch choir, and at the time he received the choir money he had every intention of paying it over. He was just starting in business at Te Awamutu and was finding it difficult. He had no pre. vious convictions and was an undischarged bankrupt. A full confession had been made. Counsel asked for probation. His Honor said ho could not accede to the suggestion for probation. He would take no notico of the police reports, except S i that the reports could Dot say anything m [prisoner's favour. A series of impudent frauds had been committed. Prisoner was in a position of trust and took advantage of that to commit crimes which were injurious and showed a certain amount ot audacity. Prisoner had started on a course which would have to be checked. ' The sentence was one of 12 months' imprisonment. A term of two years' imprisonment was imposed on Richard Dyer Downey, who had admitted the theft of a motor-car, s, motor-cycle and side-car, and a motor-car engine, as well as a charge of false pretences. The Judge said that prisoner was ap. parently determined on a career of crime and had committed a series of frauds which were cunning and to a certain extent clever. His Honor feared that prisoner was going to be a menace to society, and moreover, the present charges were very * serious indeed. However, he had regard ' ■ to the fact that prisoner was a young man with a wife and two children and imposed & sentence of reasonable leniency. Jolm Ormiston Wood (Mr. Singer) had pleaded guilty to false pretences, the sum concerned being £6. Mr. Singer said that ' prisoner had held the highest chtrscier previously. His health was now seriously impaired and counsel suggested that probation would be proper. His Honor said he wished to give Wood every opportunity of redeeming himself. He would bo admitted to probation for 12 months.

A young man, Tuania Riki (Mr. Cocker) was admitted to two years' probation for carnal knowledge at Ruatorea. His Honor stated that tho girl was as much to blame as prisoner. A boy of 16 years, Charles Rovdon Campbell, was ordered to a Borstaf Institution for a term of three years on a charge of having committed an unnatural offence.