Craving for drink behind $5k theft

A man’s desperate cravings for alcohol saw him strip a bottle shop of $5000 in spirits and a country pub of $500 worth of liquor.

About 5.45am on November 12, Ronald Edward Pera Atkinson walked towards the Super Liquor store on Leach St in New Plymouth. He picked up a rock and smashed a window to get in.

Atkinson then loaded boxes and bottles of alcohol into a bucket and onto a trolley and stashed it around a neighbouring property.

The summary of facts said the defendant made several similar trips and ended up stealing more than $5000 in liquor.

But he was captured on CCTV and police were able to recover some of the stolen drink.

On January 17 Atkinson was at it again. This time at the Urenui Hotel on Whakapaki St. He found a partially open window, which he climbed through.

The noise disturbed the hotel’s owner, but Atkinson escaped with $500 worth of alcohol and was arrested soon after.

On Monday, the 36-year-old was sentenced in the New Plymouth District Court on five charges to which he had previously pleaded guilty: two counts of burglary, wilful trespass, intentional damage and driving in a dangerous manner. The two latter charges related to the morning of the bottle shop burglary.

About 7.10am, Atkinson was a passenger in a car being driven by his former partner along Devon Rd, towards New Plymouth. He began verbally abusing her and then yanked the steering wheel, causing the car to veer towards a power pole. She pulled over and called police but while on the phone Atkinson punched and kicked out at the car.

The court heard how Atkinson’s abuse of alcohol had been the primary cause of his offending.

Judge Chris Sygrove set a jail term of 24 months before converting it to a year’s home detention.