TWO teenage boys yesterday admitted stealing £1,400 from the North Show. Two of their friends admitted receiving stolen money.

The Juvenile Court heard that one of the thieves had been given a suspended sentence just weeks before for a string of offences and that just £230 had been recovered.

Assistant-Magistrate Cherry McMillen branded the acts disgraceful.

Inspector Geoff Chapman told how, at about noon on the Wednesday of the show, a 16-year-old and a 14-year-old had been dropped off at Saumarez Park.

They walked into the committee tent at the back of which they saw a safe. The 16-year-old tried the door and it opened.

Inside was £1,400 in plastic-wrapped packets of £1 and £5 notes. It had just been delivered.

The two took the money to the public toilets, stripped off the wrapping and stuffed the money into their clothing.

They took a bus to Town, on the way calling two friends: a second 16-year-old and a boy of 15.

They all met at the bus terminus. The first two told the others where they had got the money from before sharing it out.

They then went on a spending spree.

The 14-year-old used stolen money to buy a mobile phone from Wave and clothing from Burton.

The second 16-year-old bought a £30 pair of boots from a shop in the Commercial Arcade.

The four met again in Soundtrack where the first 16-year-old bought a mobile phone for £175.

In the meantime show organisers had reported the theft to police. CCTV footage from Wave led to their identification and all four were arrested the following day – at the show.

The first 16-year-old admitted stealing the money. The court heard that on 7 August, about two weeks before the show, he had received a sentence of three months’ youth detention, suspended for two years, after admitting eight offences and asking for a further 15 to be taken into consideration.

Advocate Andrew Ayres said his client was easily led and said he had been bullied in prison while on remand.

Miss McMillen activated the suspended sentence but reduced it to two months and two weeks youth detention. The same sentence was imposed for the North Show theft to run concurrently and a £570 compensation order was made in favour of the show organisers.

The 14-year-old also admitted theft, as well as separate counts of allowing himself to be driven in a vehicle he knew had been taken and two of stealing mobile phones from Cable & Wireless.

Miss McMillen said that while the defendant had only cautions against his name, one was for theft in May, which was particularly worrying.

She rejected Advocate Chris Green’s claim that his client had offended on the spur of the moment.

She sentenced the boy to one month youth detention concurrent and suspended for two years on each of the four offences and imposed a 12-month supervision order. A compensation order for £570 was also made in favour of the show organisers and another for £558, the value of the mobile phones, to Cable & Wireless.

The second 16-year-old admitted receiving stolen cash.

Miss McMillen said the court accepted he had received £30 to buy the boots and she ordered the North Show be compensated in that sum. It was worrying, she said, that he had been involved with the police on seven different occasions since September last year and had four cautions to his name. She ordered him to serve 18 hours at the attendance centre.

The 15-year-old admitted receiving stolen money but denied possessing cannabis resin when arrested.

He also admitted taking a motor vehicle without the owner’s consent in a separate incident and driving it without insurance in Safeway’s car park.

He further admitted burgling the archery store hut at Port Soif, but denied breaking a window at the Port Soif kiosk and also denied another count of using a motorcycle without a rear light.

Inspector Chapman said the police wished to pursue the matters that the accused was denying.

Miss McMillen adjourned the case to Monday 18 September. The defendant was bailed with conditions.