MAXIMUM FINE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 177, 28 June 1937, Page 8

MAXIMUM FINE.

BETS WITH CONSTABLE. Commenting that it was defendant’s second offence, Mr J. L. Stout, S.M., imposed the maximum fine of £2O, with 10s costs, on Clarence Robert Murphy when the latter appeared in the Magistrate’s Court, to-day, on a charge of entering into betting on April 17 last by laying totalisator odds oil the Manawatu Trotting Cup. Defendant pleaded guilty, and a eliarge against him of being on Stewart’s Road,. Awapuni, for the purpose of betting was withdrawn. Detective-Sergeant Mciklejohn stated that after the Manawa.tu Racing Club’s two-day meeting, a large number of betting slips had been found on Stewart's Road, indicating that quite a big business was being done by someone there. Consequently, for the Manawatu trotting meeting on the following da.v, Constable Thompson was brought up from Wellington. He had no difficulty in laying with defendant three bets, placing 2s 6d on Aerial Boy in the second race, 2s 6d on First Aid in the third race and 10s on Franz Derby in the Clip. He was issued with differently coloured tickets for each. Following a raid on a two-up school which was in progress, the police looked for Murphy, who had been on the footpath a short distance away, but he was missing, and had not been located until May 3 last. Mr Meiklejolm added that defendant had been fined £lO in Feilding in 1934 for betting. Mr A. M. Ongley. wlui appeared tor defendant, submitted that it was not a serious offence. There had been numerous and lengthy descriptions already given the Court of what had_ happened during that race meeting. Undoubtedly tlie police had to break up what was going on, and had done so, but defendant was only laying small bets. A penalty a.s stated was imposed by the Magistrate.