YOUTHS' OFFENCES

Evening Post, Volume CXIV, Issue 90, 13 October 1932, Page 19

YOUTHS' OFFENCES

BROTHERS CHARGED

TWO ADMIT ROBBERIES

The circumstances of various robberies iv the city and suburbs were brought to light at the Magistrate's Court yesterday when two brothers, Ronald Arthur Garner, aged 19, Maxwell Keith Garner, aged 18, and another youth, William Edward Beaslcy, aged IS, pleaded guilty, to a series of breaking and entering charges. Lindsay Edist Edward Garner, aged 22, a brother of the other two Garners, was concerned with two charges relating to the breaking and entering of a-bootmaker's shop at Khandallah and. the eountinghouse of the Ngaio Post Office, but he pleaded not guilty. The other three accused were not all charged with the same offences, but altogether the police brought four charges of breaking and entering and five of. attempted breaking and entering. The offences were committed at Moera, Khandallah, hgaio, Petone, Johnsonville, and iv the city itself. The value of the goods and money taken from the various places was small, tho largest being in the vicinity of £9. Ronald and Maxwell Garner, and f3easley, made statements to the police about the parts they had taken in the crimes, and after these documents had been put into Court, the Magistrate, Mr. E. Page, committed the accused to tho Supreme Court for sentence. The three accused were dealt with summarily on a charge of theft. Maxwell Garner and Beasley were also convicted on two charges of committing mischief by wilfully damaging a letter-box and two padlocks. After relating the facts of the summary charges, Detective-Sergeant Uevcll said that Beasley lived with his parents at Petone, and the two. Garner brothers .at Kai'warra. They had all been undfcr the supervision' of the Child Welfare Officer,'.and last year had been placed under supervision for a 'period of -twelve months. .■ The Magistrate .said, that he. had better' leave it. to'the Supreme Court to deal with'the.matter generally, but he proposed.to deal with the summary offences separately. ' On the charge Of theft each of the accused, would be fined £.1, in default one month's. imprisonment. Maxwell Garner and Beasley would be convicted on the charges of committing mischief and ordered to make good the damage. CASE AGAINST ELDEST BROTHER. Referring to the two charges against Lindsay Garner, Detective R. H. .Waterson- said 'that on • 29th September he executed a. search warrant at the home of the Garners. In'the kitchen he found some leather, which, it was alleged, had been stolen from tho'bootmdker-'s shop, and in the bedroom of the three brothers he found some slippers. In a locked, box owned by Lindsay Garner he found some writing paper and envelopes which, it'was alleged, had been stolen from, the Ngaio Post Office on the night of 20th September. -. ..... : . Later that day, witness interviewed Lindsay Garner and told him that he had. reason- to believe that he had broken into the'Ngaio Post Office and the shop of the bootmaker. ' The accused denied that lie had been implicated in either of tho offences. He said that on the night in question lie went: to the pictures'and afterwards: to a -"restaurant. He left ■ tho, restaurant -at 11.20 p.ni. with a girl, whose name he did not know, and walked with her to her home in Wadestbwn. He then walked home to KaiWarTa, and went to bed at 12.30 p.m.... He, said that, his brother Rpnaid was.in.bed., whenhe got. home. '._ ■; ALIBI {3BT UP. ' On stli.October, Lindsay Garner was arrested at Kaiwarra. When he arrived at the' police . station,.. Garner said that he, had' two -witnesses to prove where,he had been on the night of 20th SeptemborT He repeated his statement that he had been to the pictures, but said that he had met a Mrs. Hartneedy and a man named Walter Maclntyre. After he had taken the ghThome he met Mrs. Hartneedy and Maclntyre as he was walking along tho Hutt road, and they accompanied him to his home, where they remained until 2 a.m. In this second statement, Garner said that when he went to bed after 2 a.m. his brother Ronald was not at home. ■ After Lindsay had entered his plea of not guilty, the Magistrate committed him to .the Supreme Court for trial.