THE ALLEGED UTTERING.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 179, 2 August 1887, Page 3

THE ALLEGED UTTERING.

The Accused Committed

for Trial.

We1 continue, from the point, where it was broken off yesterday, our report of the pro. ceedings at -'the Police Court in the ease against Charles Aiekin, a young man who formerly occupied the position of ledgerkeeper at the Bank of New Zealand, who was charged with feloniously offering, uttering, disposing of, and putting off, well knowing the same to be forged, a certain order for the payment of money, to wit, a cheque on the Bank of Is ew Zealand for the sum of L 65, with intent to defraud. Mr H. G. Seth Smith, R.M., was on the Bench. .„ .-,, . Richard Thomas Hill, surveyor, Chapelstreet, deposed that he • had known the accused for a long time. In September or October last, he saw him in! Wyndham-street, and he asked witness to cash a cheque for him. He could nob state the amount of the cheque, but it was for a middling- large sum. He was to get larn-e notes, but he forgot whether LlO s or L2o's. He was to get L 2 for cashing it He gave witness the cheque, which he took to the Bank of New Zealand, and after some delay it was cashed. A party named Patterson was the apparent drawer. He gave the money to Aickin. He had never cashed other cheques for the accused. . By -Mr O'Meagher : He did not think L 2 was a very large remhueration for cashing a cheque. He was hard up, and he believed Aickin, whom he had known for about twenty years, wished to help.him. He had been three months in Mount Eden Gaol as a prisoner, having been convicted for pawning a level which he had borrowed from a person. That was about two yearsago. Whenhewantedsurveyors'instruments, he borrowed them. He had borrowed surveyors' instruments from the accused, and pawned them also, and never returned them to the accused. He did not prosecute him for doing that. He did not pay particular attention tothe cheque, and did not remember its colour. It was prior to borrowing, the thing 3 from Aickin that he spent the three months in Mount Eden. By Mr Brookfield : He did not institute this prosecution against Aickin. It was through the questions of Detective Walker that h*e came to give evidence. i: Alexander Y. Hay, accountant a.t the Bank of New Zealand, deposed that a Mr John Patterson had an .account at their bank He was the only Patterson who had an account there. In the beginning of this year there was some stir or fuss: about a cheque of Mr Patterson's for L 65 He believed a cheque had been presented on the 21st October. On the' 4th of January, Mr .Patterson called and. asked for the balance of account. The ledger-keeper handed it to him, and he said the°amount was incorrect and that there was a deficiency of L 65. ■ He was informed of this fact because an exhaustive search was made-for., the cheque,, and it could not be found. The accused was in the bank at the time as an employee, but witness was not aware whether tie assisted in the search. On the following day, Mr Patterson made a declaration that he had. never issued such a cbecme. They had used every effort to find the cheque, but up to the present had not been able to da so. The bank had refunded the, money to Patterson's account. He suspected that the.offender was no one outside the Bank, but must be an official of the Bank well acquainted with the accounts. Mr Goodhue was placed on probation for having paid a false cheque. He was the person who should have seen that the cheque was correct, as he was the marking ledgerkeeper. The accused was absent from d uty on the 21st October. He went on leave on the sth of that month, and returned on the morning of the 19th. He then asked for a few days to enable him to put his house in order, and witness granted the extended leave, which accused availed himself of. He returned to work on the 22nd of October. Mr Kissli»g- came to know of accused's CTuilt, and sending fOr him said: —'' We know all about that cheque; we know you did it, and we know you gave a man a pound for cashing it." He made no reply for a. considerable time, after which Mr Kissling said to him—"Have you anything to say ?" He then replied, '.' I. have nothing to say." Then Mr Kissling referred to a shortage that had'taken place in the teller's cash some time previously, and accused replied, " I have nothing to do witlithe teller's cash." Then MrKissling said, "You only admit the cheque?" and he replied ! ' Yes." Then Mr Kisslingisaid,'' Why did you allow a fellow officer to be under suspicion for what you had done ?" and he answered that he was afraid! to criminate himself. He then, came into witness's office, when witness said he was sorry for what had happened and asked why he* had done. it. Accused replied that he intended to pay the money back. Witness also asked why he had not confessed before, seeing that a brother officer was, suffering for his crime, and he said he was afraid, he would lose his billet.

Charles George Andrews, Acting Manager of the Bank of New Zealand, deposed Sat on the Ist of July he was present in the manager's room of the baiiky when Mr Kissling, Mr Hay and the accused were there. When the accused came in with Mr Hay, Mr Kissling said tor him j (i We have found out all about that forged cheque of Patterson's. We know the man who presented it, and we know you paid him a pound for presenting it, and that you got the money." Mr Kissling then asked the accused if he had anything to say, and he, made no reply. Mr KisSling went on to say that there had; been two or three cases in. which the tellers were short of the. cash, and he had found that on one: of those- occasions, the accused had been in the teller's* box. writing up the vouchere. He added that he believed accused had also something to do1 with that. Accused replied that he. had nothing at all to do with it: Then- Mr Kissling said to him, "You onjy admit, then, the forged cheque?" and ■ tne accused said. "Yes." Mr Kissling asked how he had allowed an innocent man to be suspected, and accused replied that he had, no idea' that suspicion would fall on any of the clerks in the office. Mr Kissling expressed the opinion that' accused should nofe have allowed an innocent man to suffer without criminating himself, and Aiekin replied that he could not clear him without criminating himself. Detective Walker deposed to the arrest of the prisoner on the 2nd of July. Accused: read the warrant, and then said, Uil wanted the money at the time, and a friend'had promised to lend it to mdj but he went away, and I' was disappointed, so I did this. I' thought I would be able toipay ifc back." He subsequently saidj "Hill caßhied that cheque for me. You.know old HilL"

By Mr O'Meagher: Before >I, arrestedhim I said, "I suppose you know what I have come about?" His answer iWas, " Yes, but I did not think you would come so soon." Then I took the warrant out. He mentioned his interview.with Mr Kissling*, not in reply to a question by witness. He never asked accused a question about Hill or anything else after he arrested him. He never put questions to prisoners after they were in custody., Prisoner did say he had better not tell witness too ttiuch, as he would have to give evidence against him. Witness did say that he would not'use anything against him that was told V>. confidence. Accused then said, "Well *JJJiat I' have told you is private." Xt was,, however, too late then. He could nob allow it to date back. Judge John&tbiie once told him that he had no right to caution a witness* h\\b simply

let them talk away. He always followed that advice. He did not ask accused any questions to elicit the. information he had given in his evidence. Mr Brookfield said in face of the evidence he had already adduced, he would not call the three witnesses necessary to show what became of the money. Ml* O'Meagher said the main difficulty the prosecution had to contend against was the absence of proof that the cheque was a. forgery, • The prisoner, who reserved his defence, was committed for trial at the next Criminal Sessions of the Supreme Court. Bail was allowed to prisoner in his own surety of LIOO and two others of LSO each.