DARWIN, June 7. - The trial of Donald Speed and Alan Penrose, Melbourne businessmen, on a charge of having stolen 6046[sic] radio valves from the Commonwealth at a disposals sale at Darwin last October, and on a charge of having received the same valves, began in the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory today.
The defence counsel submitted that Mr Justice Wells should not deal with the case alone, but should have a jury.
Under the criminal procedure of the Northern Territory, the only charges tried here by a jury are murder and charges relating to Federal offences.
Speed is manager of Auto-Terms, Melbourne, and Penrose is an accountant.
The valves subject of the charges were valued at £4295. They are alleged to have been stolen from a shed in which they were for sale last year.
The Crown Prosecutor (Mr K. H. Alderman) said the Crown had positive evidence from three independent witnesses to prove that the accused took the goods as alleged. He said Speed had hurried to Guinea Airways to be flown out of the Northern Territory but had been intercepted.
Source: Trove Morning Bulletin (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1878 - 1954) Tuesday 8 June 1948 Page 3