Exemplary Sentence for Extortion Remarking that he had formerly been sentenced the two years' imprisonment for a similar offence, the Mixed Court bench on Friday jast decided to impose an exemplary' punishment of four years on an old offender, charged with extorting money from boatmen.
He was stated by Det.-Sgt. Conduit to have gone on board the boats employed in transporting stone from the Municipal quarries. On one occasion the defendant was accompanied by six men. He asked for money and when refused, declared that he would cause all the cargo to be precipitated into the creek.
A wharf watchman said on that one evening three men came on to the boat. They asked for the boatmaster. On being told he was not on board, all of these undesirables slept there for the night. When the master returned he gave the defendant 60 cents. Another witness said that defendant repeatedly asked for some '"'cigarette money.""
Four previous convictions were proved against the man.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.