OPOTIKI COURT

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 5, Issue 52, 13 May 1942, Page 5

OPOTIKI COURT

MONTHLY SITTING THEFT OF AKTICLKS At the monthly sitting of the Magistrate's Court held last week before Mr E. L. Walton, S.M., at the Opotiki Courthouse, Isaac Komcne, aged 22, pleaded guilty to three charges of theft, and also to a charge of converting a horse to his own use and cruelly over-riding the animal. The charges against accused Avere that on January 1 he stole 1 gallon of benzine valued at 2/11, the property of Isaac Walker; that at Opotiki on January 1, he stole 2 feet of rubber tubing, valued, at 2/-, and one oil tin valued at 1/6, the property of James Dunlop; that on February 1, he stole 1 gallon of benzine valued at 2/11 the property of Erie Loonc.y; that on April 27 at Waiawa he unlawfully converted a horse to his own use, the. horse being the property of Tiwai Amoamo; that, on April >27 at Waiawa he cruelly overrode the horse. Sergeant J. Isbister outlined the circumstances surrounding the theft of the various articles. Accused had had previous convictions. With regard to the conversion of the horse, accused was working at Waiawa, and took the horse to go to. the pic-

tures. After the pictures accused rode the horse back very hard and left it in a bad condition on the roadside, the night being cold. Three days later the horse's legs were still swollen and paralysed. The horse;, which was valued at £1.~ was now recovering. The magistrate said that accused would net take warning from his previous appearances in the court and would be sent to prison. Terms of imprisonment totalling 3 months were imposed for the various offences.