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Showing posts from July, 2014

312: Crim du Jour

A new series, in which I post real things that criminals get up to, taken from official court records. Today's Crim du Jour comes to us from Mount Gambier, South Australia. " The facts of the offences are relatively straightforward.  On 8 December last year you went to a car yard in Millicent to steal petrol. It was in the late evening. You punctured the petrol tanks of two vehicles and were in the process of collecting the fuel from the tanks when you lit a cigarette and an explosion and then a fire took place." Result - 8 months in the Big House and 3rd degree burns all over the body. That's a winner!

311: Crown Court R ‐v‐ Rolf Harris. Sentencing remarks of Mr Justice Sweeney

    In the Southwark Crown Court  R ‐v‐ Rolf Harris Sentencing remarks of Mr Justice Sweeney 4 July 2014 Rolf Harris you are 84 years old. You have no previous criminal convictions or cautions recorded against you. You are no longer in the best of health. For well over 50 years you have been a popular entertainer and television personality of international standing – with a speciality in children’s entertainment. You are also an artist of renown. You have been the recipient of a number of honours and awards over the years. You have done many good and charitable works and numerous people have attested to your positive good character. But the verdicts of the jury show that in the period from 1969 to 1986 you were also a sex offender ‐committing 12 offences of indecent assault on 4 victims who were variously aged between 8 and 19 at the time. There were a number of aggravating features. You took advantage of the trust placed in you, because of your celebrity status, to co