MAGISTRATE'S COURT

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3080, 10 May 1917, Page 9

MAGISTRATE'S COURT

SEVERAL THEFT CASES. Mr. W. G. Riddell, S.M., presided at the Magistrate's Court yesterday. Joseph Nicholls and John M'Carthy were jointly charged with breaking and entering the warehouse of John Duthie and Co., Ltd., on April 18 last, and stealing a quantity of electroplate ware of the value of £90 Bs. According to the. evidence. Constable Shield,- who was on duty in Victoria Street on tho night in question, found tho door of the warehouse open. The mattor was immediately communicated to the police sergeant and to Mr. R. M. Jack, a direotor of the company. On entering the premises, they found a sack packed with E.P. ware ready for removal and there were also some pieces of E.P. waro on the counter, on which there were finger prints. Some broken glass was also found, and on this, too, there were several fingor-prints. M'Carthy, who up till four months ago was in the employ bf John Duthie and Co., was seen in Victoria Street by Constablo Shield, who also saw Nicholls in the same street, and again in Cuba Street, on the night of tho thoft. On the following day M'Carthy was seen carrying a sack full of goods, and when in tho neighbourhood of the firo brigade station ho mot a man with a hand-cart and hired him' to take the sack to Courtenay Place. Arriving there, M'Carthy offered the contents of the sack to a second-hand dealer named Sarah Brickman. He stated that the E.P. ware was worth £50, but he was willing to sell it for £10. No business resulted. " M'Carthy triod to do business with another second-hand dealer in Taranaki Street, but failed in his efforts. He was arrested the following day, and at first denied all knowledge of the matter, but later owned up, and took the constable to a backyard in College Street, whore two sacks full of E.P. ware were found. Nicholls was arrested later, and when'charged with the theft denied it, and when told his finger-prints were found on certain goods in Duthie's warehouse ho said ho could not account for it. Both of the accused pleaded guilty, and wore committed to the Supreme Court for sentence.

THEFTS FROM HOTELS.. ' Edward Alfred Walsh pleaded guilty to the theft of a gold watch and chain and sovereign case, valued at £12, from the Masonic Hotel, Palmerston North, the property of J. Cornish, engine-driver in the N.Z. Railway Department. '11:0 facts of tho case as related wero that Cornish was living at tho hotel, and on going on duty one morning (October 3) he loft'the goods mentioned in his room, and when ho returned about four or fivo hours later thoy had disappeared. On October 6, accused sold tho stolen jewellery to a second-hand dealer in "Wellington for £2 165., iinder falf-o name and address. The second harddealer soon afterwards sold the watch for 7s. 6d., but the chain and sovereign case wero recovered. Accused was committed to the Supreme Court for sonteneo.' SValsh also pleaded guilty to the theft of £3 in money from the Alasonic Hotel, Hastings, on October 4. On this charge he was sentenced to three months' imprisonment. THEFT OF PETROL. A lad, 16 years of ago, named James Marena, who pleaded guilty a week ago to stealing n. tin of petrol, of the valno of 10s., tho proporty of Nollio Nightingale, was brought forward for sentence. It was stated that the lad had been previously convicted of theft, on which occasion ho received a birching.' Tho boy, who is at pronent at work, was ordered to report to tho Probation Offioor onco a fortnight during the next six mouths. OTHER CASES. Pafc Malouoy, who was found helplessly drunk ia Dixon Street, and whd had already spent twenty-four hours in custody, was convicted and discharged. A

second charge- of failing to comply with the terms of a maintenance order in respect of ]iis wife was witm'lrawn, there being doubt as to his identity. For insobriety; Lilian Playter was fined 205., in default twenty-four Hours' imprisonment, and Archibald M'lntyre was fined 205., or to servo thrco (lays in gaol. Doris Bellinger was convicted of being a roguo ar. :i vagabond, in that she possessed insufficient lawful means of support. The girl, who is only about ciglitcon years of ago, and who camo to , Wellington from Palmerston North, was found at an early hour of tho morning on tho Thorndon Esplanade. Sho was ordered to bo detained in the Salvation Army Homo for a period of twelve months.