Stole Stamps From Waste

Chronicle (Levin), 10 December 1948, Page 5

Stole Stamps From Waste

INVERCARGILL, Dec. 9. Ari interesting ease, deseribed by Detectivo-Sergeant McDougall as the /irst Of its kind in New Zealand, and if not New Zealand certainly the lirst in Southland, was heard by ATr. Haflow in the Magistrate's Court todfty. Five men, all employetis or t'ormer empioyees of the Railways Departnient. pleadecf guilty to charges of the theft of quantities of .vtiste paptir bearing postage stamps of a total value of £693. They were all convicted and reniatided •for seiitence until Deeember 14. • The police prosecutor stiid the ease eoncerned^a not usual typc of theft which involved vvaste paper collected at the Post and Telegfaph Dcpartitient, ^Vellington, and wheft audited and of no further use, was bagged and sent to' the paper niills at Mataura. Followitig c'omplaints of sliort shipuients, inVfestigation showed that large quantities of stamps had beeii sent fi'otn the Sotithland area to dealers throughout the DolfiitiiOti and that th6 mt'fi ehargdd had been selling large- quantities Of l'evetitie stamps. Eaeh accused said the btigS had been torn and the contetits exposed and in some cases lying abo*t Ihe trueks. . As it was not customafy. to rebag this waste, the accused had rentoVed the stamps and distributed them to dealers. One accused had retfeived £241, another £1 (53, the tbifd £117, the fohfth £97 and the fiftli £84. None of the men had any previous eonviction atid- all boi'e iinimpeacllable characters. In the interviews all Had been quite truthftil.