ALLEGED SAFE-BLOWING

Taranaki Daily News, 1 May 1930, Page 11

ALLEGED SAFE-BLOWING

MAN DENIES ALLEGATIONS

PRICE COMMITTED FOR SENTENCE.

ADMITS RECEIVING AND UTTERING

Theft from a bedroom in the Criterion Hotel, New Plymouth, recently, and the use of explosives in attempts to open safes at New Plymouth and Stratford were recalled in the Police Court at New Plymouth yesterday. Llewellyn Price pleaded guilty and was committed to the ;Supreme Court for sentence on the following charges: —

That oh or about March 6, at New ■ ■Plymouth, he received from R. H. Camp- ; .bell a wallet containing .property valued at £l3O, the property of Robert McMillan, knowing it to have been dishonestly obtained; that, knowing it to have been forged', he cauccd a cheque for £5, ; -dated March 7 and drawn on the Bank Lof New Zealand at Palmerston North, . to be acted upon by J. .Withers, Stratford, as if it were genuine. Price admitted the following charge, and having elected to be dealt with sumi marily, was convicted, sentence being dei ferred until after the - Supreme Court session: That at Upper Hutt on or about : December 31, 1929, with intent to de- . fraud, he obtained from Louis Taylor 'Rowley a suit valued at £9 10s by false pretence in that he represented himself : as a farmer and owner bf a farm in the Mungaroa district, a motor-car and & banking account. ;; Among the charges against Robert ; Harvey Campbell were the theft of the wallet, breaking and entering by night andthefts in the office of the New Plymouth Harbour Board and the shop of ' Masters, Ltd., at Stratford. He eon- ■ ducted his own defence and freely questioned the witnesses. Lengthy evidence against him was not concluded yesterday. The case against Price, was proceeded with first, the evidence being led by Detective Meiklojphri. LOSS .OF .THE WALLET. ’ : Robert McMillan, traveller, Palmerston •I North, said he . was at the Criterion Hotel, New Plymouth, on March 6 in bedroom 32. Next morning he missed a wallet from his pocket containing a cheque book on the Bank of New Zealand, Palmerston North, a letter of credit for £2OO drawn on the Bank of New Zealand and Its branches, of which £9O had been withdrawn, an annual railway ticket valued at £42 ss, a membership ticket of the Commercial Travellers’ Association, and a membership ticket of the Palmerston North Cosmopolitan Oub. The total value of the articles was £l3O. The cheque form from his >book, produced, had net been filled in by him, though, assuming the person concerned possessed the letter of credit, he had made a good job of writing the signature. •• To Mr. I Roy (for Price): The cheque' had not been paid. "The man standing in the dock came to me to purchase shirts on March :8,” said Denis John Withers, employed in Hallenstein Bros.’ shop, Stratford. He bought two shirts for 18s sd. He presented a cheque for £5, at the same time showing a letter of credit for £2OO on the bank at Palmerston. The cheque was cashed and £4 Is 9d. given in change. Later the cheque was returned by the bank marked “signature unlike specimen.” Two statements from Price obtained voluntarily by Constable H. Shields were read. In them Price said he was discharged from the Auckland prison on probationary license on March 11. He admitted getting the suit at Upper Hutt, but said he intended to pay for it. He came to Taranaki on the second day of the show and stayed at the Grosvenor Hotel, where he met Campbell, who was passing under the name of Rea. Campbell had told him he had "done the Criterion job.” Campbell handed him the things and wanted him to draw £2OO on the letter of credit. This he refused to do. He. saw Campbell practising McMillan’s signature, using that on the letter of credit as a guide. Campbell signed the cheque form and Price subsequently filled it in and cashed it at Stratford. ’ Campbell told him he had been caught in a bedroom at the Criterion, but had got away. In Price’s possession, proceeded Constable Shields, he found the wallet, cheque book, fi-st-elaSs season railway ticket and 'other things. CHARGES AGAINST CAMPBELL. Evidence against Robert ; Harvey. Campbell was then proceeded with. The detailed charges against him were: — At New Plymouth, on or about March 6, theft of a wallet containing an annual section railway ticket, a letter of credit for £2OO, tickets for the Commercial Travellers’ Association and Cosmopolitan dub, a cheque book on the Bank of New Zealand with about 17 blank forms, the property of Robert McMillan and of a total value of £l3O. On March 13, breaking and entering by night the counting house of the New Plymouth Harbour Board, and theft of 36 penny stamps and one coat valued at 355, the property of Norman Percy Lealand. At Stratford, on March 18, breaking and entering by night the shop of Masters, Ltd., and stealing a cheque for £2O and about £lOO in money, a bicycle, a tin of sardines, the total, value being £123, and theft of a ..rain, coat valued at £5 Is, the property of Leslie John Coldwell.' 1 • ■•' At .New Plymouth,. on-March 19, obtained from Edward Cawthray a Morris Cowley car valued at £l6O by means of a false pretence, representing that he was a farmer living in High Street, Dannevirke, with- a farm at Tahoraite and an account at the Bank of New Zealand, Dannevirke. At New Plymouth, on or about March 6, forgery of a cheque for £5, dated March 7 and dra n on the Bank of New Zealand, Palmerston North, purporting to be signed by Robert McMillan, the intention being that the cheque should be acted o)i. Campbell, who was supplied with paper and a pencil, asked that witnesses should be ordered out of the court. Sounds of a scuffle in the passage were heard by Robert McMillan at night, he said. On waking next morning he found his door ajar. He thought nothing of it at the time. Later he found his wallet was missing. To Campbell: Though he, stood to lose £llO on his letter - f credit, he had actually Jost nothing, as the document had been cancelled. To Mr. Tate, S.M.: He valued his railway ticket at £42 ss. This was . cancelled; .■ too, and a new one obtained on t!ho payment of 255. ; r ,(dO’-rr.\ pi' ■ ■. i ” “'H

The capture of the man in the Criterion Hotel and his escape were described by Walter Edward Reid, merchant, Up.per Hutt. He occupied room 33, next to McMillan’s. He went to bed about 9 p.m. and was awakened by a noise about 1.40 a.m. He found his door had been opened about half-way. He got out of bed and asked the porter if he had "opened the door. Upon a negative reply being received, he went back to bed. Feeling uncomfortable he again got up and switched on the light. He then saw a man crouching behind the end of the bed.

He called the porter, who came immediately. The man surrendered without struggling. He said he had gone into the wrong, room and that he had taken nothing. He had no boots or hat. Later tho three of tliem went downstairs and the porter went into the street, presumably with the object of seeing whether a policeman was about, In the meantime the man dashed up the stairs. FAILED TO CATCH HIM. "I failed to catch him and saw nothing more of him until I identified him at the parade this morning,” continued Reid. “He is now in the dock.” Prisoner; Mr. Reid, had you ever seen me before? Reid: Only on that night. How long was 'I in -your presence 1 Seven or eight minutes. Are you sure it was me ? Yes, positively certain. Did not you say at the parade that yon “thought” I was the man? Yes, I said I believed you to be the man. Your exact words were that you “thought” I was the man? No, I said I believed you were the man. Were you shofvn my photograph before the parade? No. Corroborative evidence was given by Frank King, night porter at the Criterion Hotel. When he returned from the street the man had disappeared. He had had no hesitation in picking him out at the police station that day. That was the man in the dock. •His experiences on the night of the attempted safe-blowing in the office of the New Plymouth Harbour Board were described by Edward C. Bateman, tot that period night watchman to the board. About 4.30 a.m. on March 13, near th end of his round he heard a loud, bombing noise. It seemed almost as though a door at a distance had been slammed. He went to the front of the office and then to the back, where he found the door partly open. A pair of shoes and a small iron bar were nearby. He hid this and returned to the back door. Hearing a noise inside he pushed open the door, went into the passage, and flashed his torch. All the inside doors connecting with the main office were open. SOUND. OF A SCUFFLE.

Upon the light being flashed there was a sound of a rush or scuffle. He tried unsuccessfully to fasten the back door from the outside. Having found that both front doofs were closed he went to his oflice and telephoned the police. Later investigation in the secretary’s office disclosed the door of the safe had been blown loose. A pinch-bar was found nearby and the marks of bare feet were in the sand between the offices and the bank. They led towards the tramline.

Entrance had been effected through a back window that ..had been forced, said Clarence . .Sydney Rennell, secretary to the Harbour Board. The cost of repairing the safe would be between £lO and £l5. The office drawers had been forced, apparently with a crowbar, and the contents had been scattered about the floor. Keys from various parts of the office were lying on the floor.

Other evidence-relative to the entrance to the Harbour Board office was given by Norman Percy Lealand, clerk, and Marjory Ley man, typiste. The results of the burglary at the shop of Masters, Ltd., at Stratford were described by Arthur Richard Masters. Ncit morning he found the glass broken in the skylight. The strongroom door was open, explosives having apparently been inserted in the keyhole, which was plugged with soap. He considered entrance had been effected through the skylight, through the main office and the office of Mr. Hughson. There were footmarks and red marks possibly made by hands after touching the paint on the roof.

To the prisoner: He could not say the precise amount of. cash in silver and notes. There might have been other cheques, than those stated, but he could riot say if there were any others. There was over £4O in cash and there might be £BO.

Other evidence concerning the charge relating to the premises of Masters, Ltd., was given by Leslie A. J. Coldwell, manager of the Stratford hardware department, He identified an overcoat belonging to him and a handkerchief marked “L.C.”

To the prisoner: He identified the coat by the trade-mark and a rent at tho bottom.

After evidence ha' been given by J. Withers concerning the cashing of the cheque at Stratford, and by Henry D. Bcddingfield, Bank of New Zealand, New Plymouth, on handwriting specimens, the court adjourned.