CALLED BACK.

Auckland Star, Volume XX, Issue 193, 15 August 1889, Page 4

CALLED BACK.

THAMES LEVANTER CAPTURED.

A CLEVER ARREST.

A BOG QS CATHOLIC PRIEST.

Frederick Clarence Dean, late Clerk and Treasurer to the Thames Borough Council, who disappeared mysteriously about a month ago, was cleverly arrested by Detective Herbert, at Norfolk Island, oh the 25th ult., and brought to Auckland, via Sydney, on board the steamer Hauroto, arriving here early this morning. Dean is charged with embezzlement, and his defalcations are said to tot up to something like £2,000. The circumstances which have led up to this serious denoue' ment may be remembered, but will bear repetition for the sake of furnishing a complete narrative of one of the best-planned escapes and clever arrests that have been attempted or effected for some considerable* time.

DEFALCATIONS DISCOVERED,

Prior to the 12th July last, ie had been discovered that there were serious discrepancies in Dean's accounts, and about 5 o'clock on the evening of that day he was arrested at the Thames by Sergeant Gillies on several charges of embezzlement. That informations were laid at the instance of Patrick Mclntyre, Audit .Inspector, and set forth that Dean did feloniously steal,. take and carry away on the 19th October, 1388, £14 4s ; on the" 27th October, £11 18s; on the 3rd November, £4 14s ; and on the 15th December, £4 18s, being moneys belonging to the Borough Council. Accused was brought up at the Police Court nexfc day before Mr Northcroft, R.M., when Mr Hudson Williamson appeared for the prosecution and Mr Miller for the accused. Mr Miller aeked for a remand until Monday, 15th instant, ■which was granted, accused being admitted to bail, himself in £200 and two sureties orf £100 each.

THE PACIFIC SLOPE.

In the meantime it was discovered thas Dean bad taken his departure for fresh* fields and pastures new, and when the adjourned charts were called on the 15th ult. Dean, of course, was not there to answer, and the sureties given fot' his re-appearance were ordered to be estreated. Mr H. Williamson, Crown Prosecutor, on this occasion said that he had been informed that the accused e-oaped iv a fishing smack on tie previous Thursday night, under cover of darkness. He said that the result of an audit of the borough accounts showed thafc the ratepayers' money amounting to considerably over £1,000 had been fraudulently misappropriated by Dean. It was found, he added, that the defalcations: extended over several years ; thab the initials of Councillors in the Finance Committee's report entered in the minute book had been very cleverly forged, and every other means of deceit resorted to by their late Town Clerk. It had. also been discovered that he had made improper use of the stamps of houses of business, and under the whole of the circumstances, it was not to be wondered at thafc their late Town Clea k -was not to be found. In conclusion, Mr W illiamson congratulated the burgesses of tine Thames on the facb that the "old math of the sea," who had been such a burden i on their shoulders fot so long, had now bsen wholly got rid of.

THE PURSUIT.

It was subsequently ascertained that Dean managed to c ifect his escape from thp Thames on the niglht of the 11th July in » fishing smack, and it was concluded that he had either boarded., the schooner Christine, Captain MeLiver, which sailed from Auckland on the Saturday previous,, bound for Norfolk Island and New Caledonia,, or else had su/cceed<ed in effecting his escape- ,- by the outgoing msail steamer. The latter supposition was peroved to be incorrect, a detective having accompanied the mail steamer out of "port, and the obvious conclusion was that Dean was fairly on his way to INorfolk Island. Th& Thames Borough, Council decided to guarantee £100 towards the expenses of following Dean, and if possible, bring him back to justice, and Detective Herbert having been told,, off for the task, lost no time in getting on the track of the fugitive.

A STOCRMY VOYAGE.

The detective, armed with' a warrant for the arrest of Dean on several charges of embezzlement., took passage by theMelanesian Mission schooner Scuthem Cross, bour,d for Norfolk Island and other missijon stations, in thto hope that he would b/e able to overtake tne Christine, and be ready to give Dean a fitting reception when ho landed at that fertile spot. A ' s stern-chase" is proverbially " a long one," but tho detective was hopeful, and the captain of theSouthern Cross was urged to make the old craft do her "bost on record. . The Southern Cross left Auckland on Tuesday, iohe 16th July, and sighted Norfolk Island, after a fair run of about 5 days, oa tb'a following Saturday. The weather, towards tho end of the voyage was frightfully rough, and continued so stormy that it was found impossible to send a boat ashore until Sunday morning. It was an open question , whether ib was the presence of the detectiveor the clerical passengers who were accountable for this ill-favour on the part of Jupiter Pluvius, but the question was not discussed, at length, for obvious reasons.

THE CHRISTINE IN SIGHT.

Detective Herbert was rowed ashore «nar Sunday morning, and then learned that the schooner Christine had arrived on the afternoon of tlae previous Friday, just one day ahead of tlie Mission schooner. Captain McLiver, master of the Christine, was ashore, having a family residence on the island, and trie rest of the passengers were said to be srbill on board the schooner, which was lyeng off the shore on account of stress of weather, in charge of the chicf 7 officer. Detective Herbert ascertained from. some of the inhabitants that'a man answering to thet description of Dean was onboard the Christine, and it may be* imagined that his anxiety became greatly increased, for fear that the fugitive might' obtain some inkling of the reception that awaited him, by means of preconcerted, signals or by communication with the , shore. The weather being so boisterous as' to preclude immediate inspection of the> Christine, the detective had a watchful eye on both schooner and the inhabitants of the island. The weather, instead of improving however, became worse, and the atmosphere so dense that the Christine disappeared from view for two days. It was subsequently ascertained that she had been, blown some distance out to sea. After the* lapse of these two days the Christines turned up safely, and cast anchor a ehorfc distance offshore, bub "he had hardly done so when her cable broke, and the ancb.or: being lost, she was BLOWN FIFTY MILES AWAY and, therefore, was quite out of sight of land. On the Thursday following,' the 25th : July, the Christine was sighted af ;out five; miles off the island, beating up ye' r y slowly, the wind having dropped to a lfy breeze,, and the weather having become f ue. When she was wibhin about four miles of the island the detective's patience was' exhausted, or, he considered it a wise pree*' ution to meet) his intended victim half w;«y . He therefore hired a boat and crew bq,W ;e him off to the schooner, and, having 'oeei\ jO ut safely alongeide, he went on boa\xi fco solve the problem: •• Where is Dean ?" TJbe appearance of the detective was a o.ompfctre surprise to all on. board.anditmav berecolkicted'thattheChris-. tine's passengers included , , the Phelps party; of evangelip,ea who were om thoir way to con«: vert the heathen. A clorical-lookiog

M gentleman who wore ordinary clothing, bit a decidedly religious-looking hab, apneared to be bhe most surprised of all, and PLn detective made known the object fhis visit this old gentleman fell into a tiite of complete collapse. The detective fben fairly congratulated himself on what ff oS really a very clever capture. THE REV. FATHER DAVIES.

Tfc that Dean had. been known board the Christine as the Rev. Father Davics. a Roman Catholic priest, bound tor New Caledonia, and it was understood that he had been appointed to take charge of a mission station there. He had nob been conducting divine service on board during the voyage, however, t jj e balance of the evangelists being both able and willing to monopolise that nrivilege, but he had conducted himself admirably, and was considered to be a very nice old gentleman. Detective Herbert at once p»b Dean under arrest, and informed him of the serious charges pending against him ab the Thames. Dean seemed c g m pletely prostrated, and quite resigned to his fate , - He was not handcuffed, but was kept in close companionship by the detective, and from his arrest right on he proved himself to be a most exemplary prisoner. , AMONGST THE CHRISTIANS.

As tHe Christine was not ready to resume her voyage to New Caledonian, and as the Southern Cross was bound to the New Hebrides, the detective decided to escort liia'prisoner ashore, and remain there until the Christine was ready to sail, in the hope that from ]New Caledonia he would be able to secure passages for himself and ])ean back to Auckland. Detective Hμjjort and his prisoner dropped into lappy quarters ab Norfolk Island, which is the rendezvous of a large family of Christians. Mr S. Christian, the Chief Magistrate, Mr Champion, and Mr Robinson rendered the detective every possible assistance, the magistrate being especially obliging- Dean was formally brought, before the magistrate at Norfolk Island, charged with the embezzlement of moneys belonging to the Thames Borough Council and ordered back, to give an account of himself whence he came. DEAN GOES TO CHURCH. Detective Herbert, during his brief sfcaY on the island, had invitations to "dine" from many quarters, and no dislike whatever was evinced to the inevitable companionship of Dean. Dean was in fact very well heated, and gave evidence of his appreciation, by expressing a desire to attend divine service on the Sabbath. ' The shrewd policeofficer saw no harm in that, and, being of rather a religious bont himself, gladly escorted his prisoner to the island sanctuary. Ifc was n singular occurrence to find a detective and bis prisoner at prayers, side by side, in the handsome little Anglican church on this historic island, and tho rest of the worshippers may be pardoned for being more than usually devout in returning thanks for the "most recent addition to rtheir flock. Dean appeared much impressed while the service was being intoned, anß no doubt felt well able to pray with the parson, "Have mercy upon us miserable sinners." The chanting of the psalms seemed to raise his spirits, and generally he enjoyed tho service very much/ He was neatly attired, with pretty lady-like gloves close-fitting his slender fingers, and the gentler sex on the island were in "heartfelt sympathy" with the poor absconder.

HOMEWARD BOUND,

On the 31st July the detective and Dean were once more, on .bourd the Christine, bound for New Caledonia, aocl Noumea was reached on the 3rd of August. Here they iinppened to meet with the Fijian mail boat "Victory" boundforSydney,andnuxtmorn3ii£ they were " one day nearer home "in comfortable quarters on board that vessel. Sydney was reached on the Bth mat., and on the 9th Dear, and bis caretaker were passenders by the sreamer " ILmroto." bound for "Auckland. Their arrival here was not expected, owing to tjie fact that the cable had been interrupted between Sydney and New Zealand, a message left in th& Telegraph Office at Sydney, beinsr still detained there in consequence of ■the wires bein<r down. Dean was never SiandcuffV-fl from the tirno of arrest, and accompanied .Detective Herbert' to the police station quietly, and apparently quite resigned to his Jato? , When arrested, he was found in possession of seventy-one pounds, and this sum was carefully banked by his custodian. On the whole Detective Herbert must be congratulated on the result of his trip, the capture ?bein«r cleverly planned and ably fol'owed aip, proving him to be we!! worthy of the important task allotted to him.

THE PRISONER.

The accused is a gentlemanly-looking old man, 63 years of age, about 5 feet 6 inches in height, and rather slight in build. He has small, thin features, and wears a short-trim mod grey beard on chin and.side face. His hair and beard are almost quite white and, while in manner he Beemfi to be active, he i.« apparently of rather delicate constitution. He is a married man, and his wife rosides at the 'Thames, but he has no family.

DEAN, BEFORE THE COURT.

Frederick Clarence Doan appeared at the Police Court this morning, before Messrs S. Y. Collins and A. Bourdman, justices. He was charged that on the Ist Seprember, 1839, he did at the Thames unlawfully forge and utter a certain receipt or acquittance for the payment •of £12 Is 6d, with intent thereby to cheat ■and defraud.

Mr Hudson Williamson was not present "when Dean was fir.-t put in the dock. When ihearrivsd Jater on Mr Williamson said, 'I "must apply to the Bench thnb Frederick 'Clarence Dean, who is an abveonder, and 3iasbeen brought hack to Auckland, may ■now be placed in the box, and formally remanded to the Thames.

Dean was then pi iced in the dock. Everything about him was scrupulously clean, and massive #old studs were visible in the front of his white shirt.

Mr Williamson asked that the accused mijhfc be remanded to the Thames until tomorrow week.

Inspector Broharn put in the warrant wUicb Dean was arrested. The Bench granted the remand asked Jor.

Only £76 Is 3d was found in possession of Dean when arrested.