PEREGRINATIONS OF A £40 DIAMOND RING

Chronicle (Levin), 5 February 1947, Page 3

PEREGRINATIONS OF A £40 DIAMOND RING

KOTOP.UA, Fel). 4. Tlie tale of ihe perbgrinations oi a (liamoiid ring tliat squiided like a storv of Ha as Audersen, iv'as lold in tiie Kutu- ' ma Magistrate's Court today wIrmi a Maori woniau was chargod with st ealing i(. Alihough doi'eiidant ])Ieaded guiltv, Mr. J. II. Luxford, W.M., discharged lier under seetion 1S of tiie First OfTeiidcrs ' Probat.ion Aet and ; made ari order tliat lier name be not i publislied. Tlie ring, wlucli is tlie pro- j pertv of Mohammed Xlian, was valued at £40. fSenior Sergeant X. S. Milliga' told fbe court tliat about a month prior to Xovembor 27 last, Klian took tlie ring to a Pot orua jeweller's sliop for repairs but when lie called 011 tlie date nien- J tionod, it could not be found. A sl)7)p I assistant then recalled tliat about a week previously a man whom she liad evidentiy identilied as the owner but who actuallv was a Maori, liad been lianded the ring. This customer liad taken in an ex-servieeman's badge to be repaired and wlien the packet containing the ring was handed to him, ,

fmf we y^iiwiiia | lie paid the assistant 6s Od, the price of tlie repair of the badge. He explained i later to Ihe police that he thought the j ring liad beeu sold to liini. He handed I it . to his vvife who placed very little ; value on the article and kept it in her handbag until she lost it in town. JJe1 fendant liad found it and aftcr keeping it for three days in anticipation of its being advertised for, sold it for £12 to anotlier nieniber of the jewellery iirmt who did uot identif'y the ring as the oue tliat liad been mistakenly handed out. Later defendant, a ueighbour of tiie wonian who liad lost tlie ring, heard of the inquiries that were being made for it and explained how it had eonie into her possession and how she had dx..posed of.it. That was how she now found herself in court. "I think the best tliing I can do to close the matter is to discharge you, " said tlie Magistrate. "The old children 's saying 'Findings keepings ', is not altogether true. If you tind an article the only safe way is to take it to the police station and if the real owner is not found in_12 months' time, the property will be handed to you." Defendant was discharged and an order made for the return of the ring' to th'e original owner. _