H.—l6.

Gaming Offences. There were 420 prosecutions, resulting in 373 convictions, during the year under the Gaming Act, against 432 prosecutions and 393 convictions in 1925. Prosecutions of Bookmakers. The following return shows the result of prosecutions in connection with bookmaking during the year ended 31st March, 1927 : —

Criminal Registration Branch. The finger-impressions of 3,846 persons were received, classified, searched, and filed during the year; 255 persons were identified as previous offenders, either in this Dominion, the Australian States, or England, &c., who, had it not been for the finger-print system, would have passed as first offenders; one unknown deceased person was identified; 1,246 photographs were taken by the photographers attached to the branch ; the photographs of 1,796 prisoners (5,930 photographs) were dealt with, and 736 photographs were reproduced in the Police Gazette. In thirty-nine cases of breaking and entering, and one case of indecent assault, finger-prints left by offenders when committing the crime were identified. In these forty cases, all the offenders except three pleaded guilty. These three were found guilty on production of finger-print evidence in the Supreme Courts. The following cases are worthy of note : — The office and garage of the Bell Motor-bus Co., of Wellington, were broken into, and the premises were examined by an expert from this branch, who found a portion of one finger-print on the front of one of the drawers in the office desk ; from this the offender was identified after a most tedious and strenuous search of six days' duration. He was arrested, and admitted not only this offence, but ten others also. The same offender's finger-impressions were identified as those found at H. L. Young's premises at Hamilton, and he admitted breaking into eleven premises in that town A shop in one of the Wellington suburbs was broken into during the night, and next morning finger-prints found on the broken window were brought to this branch, from which the offender was identified within two hours; he was arrested an hour later with all the stolen property in his possession. The following table shows the increase since the introduction of the finger-print system of identification in March, 1903 :—

4

Offence 1 Number of I Number of j Amount of Fines Prosecutions. I Convictions. ! imposed. £ Carrying on business of bookmaker .. .. 24 22 860 Keeping common gaming house .. .. 46 43 1,928 Found in common gaming house .. .. 19 14 37 Laying totalizator odds .. .. .. 29 29 350 Publishing betting-charts .. .. .. 3 2 Street betting .. .. .. .. 6 3 170 Betting with infant ...... 1 1 25 Betting with bookmaker ...... 1 1 30 Totals .. .. 129 j 115 j 3.400

„ , , , Prisoners Number of Increase on . , Year. Prints in Previous Previous Collection. Year. 1904 .. 3,500 3,500 117 1905 .. 4,200 700 72 1906 .. 5,000 800 88 1907 .. 6,151 1,151 104 1908 .. 7,622 1,471 123 1909 .. 8,718 1,096 138 1910 .. 9,919 1,201 140 1911 .. 10,905 986 148 1912 .. 12,097 1,192 178 1913 .. 13,552 1,455 183 1914 .. 15,302 1,750 230 1915 .. 16,682 1,380 270

Number of Increase on Prisoners Year. Prints in Previous £acedas Collection. Year. 1916 .. 18,134 1,452 2181917 .. 19,508 1,374 166 1918 .. 20,982 1,474 132 1919 .. 22,332 1,350 153 1920 .. 23,686 1,354 176 1921 .. 26,650 2,964 232 1922 .. 28,408 1,758 255 1923 .. 30,284 1,876 292 1924 .. 31,929 1,645 289 1925 .. 33,802 1,873 267 1926 .. 35,844 2,042 292 192 .. 37,808 ! 1,964 255