Caught Again

NZ Truth, Issue 1204, 27 December 1928, Page 7

Caught Again

IITHEN, some time ago, Theodore "Allen, of High Street, Dunedin, was arrested for being intoxicated m charge of a motor-car,, it transpired that he had no licence. His conviction spoilt his chance of procuring one for the next twelve months. But Theodore, it seems, was not dismayed. Perhaps he thought his disqualification by Magistrate Bundle would blow over and the police forget all about it. He found that wasn't the case. On the contrary, the police" were very much alert, and alive to the fact that Theo drove his caj* on November 9 and 17. Allen's second interview with Magistrate Bundle cost him a £7 fine.

A few days after landing m Lyttelton, Broad met an old acquaintance, one he had not seen for twenty-nine years, and shortly afterwards he was lodged m the cells, where he^ had time to ponder over m the haze, whether there Is any substance m the ditty about old acquaintances being forgot. Before he was. released it was found that he was connected with the theft of many articles reported missing by Lyttelton residents. Some had been recovered, but most of them had been- bartered for drink. . i Broad was very hazy about his : ar-. rival m the South Island from New Plymouth. ' He had been told he had not been to sleep on the Maori on the trip across the ferry, and he did not recollect anything about the stolen articles, which included two overcoats, three brief bags, a thermos flask, a buthing costume, a bronze statue, an ebony elephant, a Swiss cowbell, a set of spanners, a suitcase and a quantity of. clothing. ... The accused could not account for the motive .behind his crime, to which he pleaded guilty, as he was not m need of money. .....•; "Since the Boer War," sa|d the accused, "something seems to have taken hold of me which has given me a second nature. I am a Jekyll-Hyde type,, but I am not. an inveterate drinker. It is only when I get on it that I seem to lose control.'" . His claim to dual personality was certainly supported by-., the. three aliases which appeared ne«xt» to his name, but his story cut no ice with Magistrate Young, who remarked that !the,.only time Broad had behaved'himself while m : New' Zealand Avas while he was m prison. A few days later Broad appeared.before Magistrate E. D. Mosley, m Christchurch, where he was charged with further thefts of a suitcase containing clothing, valued at £10 and , a pair of boots. Chief -detective Carroll stated that Broad took the boots from the fi'ont of a shop m Cashel Street and was followed. It was significant, the chiefdetective said, that another shop m Cashel Street, missed a pair of boots the same day from the front door, but the accused denied any knowledge of that. Broad 'relieved a railway passenger of the bag at the station, the owner putting it down for a few minutes to attend to ,his tickets. When he returned the bag was gone. The accused said he .was willing to place himself m the hands of some benevolent society or to leave the country, and the Salvation Army officer offered to undertake the work of reformation, but S.M. Mosley, eyeing Broad's list, decided on 'a term of reformative detention, and fixed the period at one year.