15 YEARS' GAOL

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 24825, 23 February 1944, Page 7

15 YEARS' GAOL

AMERICAN SOLDIER

TAXI-DRIVER ATTACKED

A sentence of 15 years' imprisonment has been imposed by an American general court-martial on Private George W, Cleninions, United States Army, who was found guilty of holding-lip an Auckland taxi-driver and assaulting and robbing him, and of two other assaults, one on a United States Army private and the other against a Maori.

Clennnons. who is 24, was stated to have held up a taxi-driver, Athol Hoy Ninkie, at .Mangere, on January 30. With another serviceman, accused was stated to have forced Ninkie to vacate the driver's seat anil sit in the back seat while the taxi was driven to Hedoubt Road, near Papatoetoe. Ninkie was then robbed of £5 Bs, trussed up, and left in some gorse on the side of the road. His taxi was taken by the servicemen and was later recovered abandoned in Green Lane. The incident concerned in the second charge was stated to have taken place in a city hotel on January 13. Clernmons was convicted of assaulting Private Joseph (Jonock with ft piece of broken glass, cutting his face.

The third conviction was for an attack on Toko Kahui, a Maori, of Auckland. On this occasion Clenimoris was found to have used ft revolver.

Total forfeiture of pay, loss of civil rights and dishonourable discharge from the United States Army are included jn the sentence.

Sentence is pending in the case of another United States Army accused, Private Theodore B. Long, who lias faced a court-martial on the charge of being the accomplice of Cleninions in the attack on the taxi-driver. *