Wages Slip Clue Led to Gaol for Denaby Men

October 1957

South Yorkshire Times October 26, 1957

Wages Slip Clue
Led to Gaol for Denaby Men

Two Denaby haulage hands admitted at Doncaster West Riding Court on Friday, stealing three ball gum machines from outside three Mexborough shops and after taking the money out of them, breaking up two of them and throwing the other into the canal.

A wages slip left near one of the smashed machines led to the discovery of the culprits, the magistrates were told.

Sentence of a total of threel’ months’ imprisonment was passed on the two men, William Rushton (19), and James Patrick Cassidy (23) both of Barnborough Street, Denaby, who pleaded guilty to stealing three ball-gum machines, containing gum and cash worth a total value of £123 5s.

The magi-rates were told that the remains the machines would only fetch £2 as scrap metal. Rushton asked for  four other offences including stealing of five gramophone records with Cassidy to be taken into consideration and Cassidy as for three other offences to be taken into consideration.

Chief Suerintendent L. D. Lewery said the Machines were taken from outside Mexborough shops in Bank Street, Adwick Road and Harlington Road and subsequently the remains of one of the machines the covered by a schoolboy walking along a footpath about a mile from Mexborough.

Near this spot a wages slip bearing the name of Rushton, was found and part of one of the machines. He said Cassidy was later seen by the police and he told them, “It’s fair enough. We did the three of them.”

In spite of a plea by Cassidy’s wife, from whom he was stated to be separated, the magistrates decided to send both men to prison. The Chairman (Mr FS newborn) said “We think you need a sharp lesson.”