COULD NOT STOP HERSELF
The court heard it was the old, old story of yielding to temptation once and then finding it difficult to stop after that. The 19-year-old girl, who described herself as ‘industrious and conscientious’ was Marion Daniels of St. John’s Ave. She admitted two charges of taking money while employed at Waverley Garage as a petrol pump attendant and asked for two similar offences to be taken into consideration. Explaining her actions, she said; “It only started with a few shillings, and once I had took one lot, I couldn’t stop myself”.
After noticing discrepancies in the takings, said Inspector Albert Cox, the garage manager sprang a trap on January 17th and found that the till was £3 light. Inquires by Detective Constable Wilson ascertained that £5 had been taken by Daniels during November.
Telling the girl that she would be put on probation for two years, and that she must make restitution of £12-5s to the garage. The chairman stated that she had obviously realised the seriousness of her actions and that she was in need of some help.
PETROL THEFT COST HIM £10 AND HIS JOB
Henry Wallingford Minto of Coventry was fined £10 at court for stealing a five gallon can of petrol from his employers, Mother’s Pride Bakeries of Baginton. Inspector Albert Cox said that the manager of the firm checked the boots of cars belonging to employees and found the petrol in Minto’s vehicle.
Detective Constable Wilson, investigated the case and his inquires led to Minto being charged. The petrol was said to be worth £1-1s-3d. Minto was stated to have since lost his job with the firm. He had not been in trouble with the police before.
MORE DRUNKEN DRIVERS THAN EVER
In 1961, Kenilworth Magisrates convicted 12 drunken people but that fell to just one in 1962. But drunken drivers increased from 6 to 9 over the same period. Addressing the annual meeting of the Kenilworth Licensing Justices commitee, Inspector Albert Cox pointed out that partcular attention had been paid to the comsumption of ‘intoxicating liquor’ by young people on licenced premises. He added that a 20 year-old man and an 18 year-old girl had been convicted of buying drinks for juveniles under 18. Also, two young people were found guilty of drinking in public houses while underage.
In the division there were 35 public houses and fully licenced hotels plus ten off-licences. The population was recorded as 32,842, that’s 938 people to each fully licenced house. The figure quoted does not apply solely to Kenilworth town. The area administrated by Kenilworth Police covers extensive territory. Licenced premises have been generally well conducted and no proceedings had been taken against licence holders.
MUDDY FOOTPRINTS GAVE THE GAME AWAY
Clues left behind by a 13-year-old local boy who helped himself to a cashbox, containing 15 shillings from one of the best-kept houses in Kenilworth, stuck out a mile. They were muddy footprints embossed on a carpet near an open window. That was on December 8th. This week the boy was on another carpet, the proverbial kind, when he appeared at the juvenile court where he was put on probation for three years.
He was told by Mrs. L. Smalley; presiding, “You have been given a chance, I hope you will respond to it“. His muddy footprints on the carpet put the police on his trail which revealed that he had committed other ‘misdemeanours’.
In November, he had stolen two money boxes, milk cheques and some money, totalling £2. Some of the money had belonged to his father, no less. When interviewed, the boy admitted the theft at the house where he left his footprints. He had noticed a window open and climbed through it and then helped himself to the loot.
TOOK MONEY BACK THAT He HAD PUT IN THE SLOT
After his wife had left their Kenilworth cottage, and their three children were put into care, Joseph Nicholson, now of no fixed abode, stole £5-7s from his own electricity meter. Inspector Albert Cox said that Nicholson, who pleaded quilty, went to Coventry after taking the money and later travelled all the way to Northumerland.
He and his wife who had lived in Bockendon Grange Road, had parted company just before Christmas. The theft was discovered when Nicholson’s wife returned to the cottage. She saw the meter had been forced open and the money had disappeared. Kenilworth Police traced the accussed to an address in Northumberland and was remanded in custody.
Presiding, Mr W. Hatterell, said in view of the fact that Nicholson had been in prison whilst awaiting trial and that he had suffered domestic trouble, the court were going to be lenient with him. He was fined £5 and ordered to pay the stolen money back to the East Midlands Electricity Board.
TOBOGANNER’S CARS CAUSED AN OBSTRUCTION
There was not much space anywhere on the road perimeter of the Abbey Fields to park cars on the first Saturday of January. So many toboganners had turned up in vehicles and two local men were among the seekers of the joys of snow. They had clumsily parked their cars on Abbey Hill near the junction of Abbey End (near the War memorial). At court, they were both charged with causing an unnecessary obstruction.
One of the men was Michael Jones of High Street, who said Inspector Albert Cox, had parked his car only four yards from the Abbey End junction. It caused cars negotiating the bend to take evasive action to avoid collisions. The other man, Barry Hirons, of Queens Road, parked his car nine yards from the junction. Both pleaded quilty by letter and each fined £1.
Five other motorists, who lived outside of Kenilworth were fined £2 each for similar offences, double that of Kenilworth residents!
LAMP PRANK
It was little wonder that the curiosity of a police patrol was aroused when they spotted a red light, late at night, going along Warwick Road. It was bobbing about as it moved along. As cars got close, it bobbed all the more. In fact, it seemed to making some kind of signal. The police car took heed of the signal, which was bad luck for two lads of the R.A.F. The airmen, David Cresswell and Gerald Roy, who are presently stationed at Wellesbourne Airbase, were the culprits of the prank. They said they were hitch-hiking back to camp after the car in which they were travelling was involved in an accident. The lamp was the property of Kenilworth Urban District Council.
The airmen had found it at the side of the road and it was not lite. They explained at court, that they proceeded to light it to warm themselves up as it was a cold night. The trouble was they had become far too attached to the lamp, and it became their travelling companion. By the time the police caught-up with them they had thrown it into a garden. For stealing the lamp, which both admitted, the airmen were fined £1 each.
