FORGED TOTALISATOR TICKETS

Auckland Star, Volume XL, Issue 137, 10 June 1909, Page 5

FORGED TOTALISATOR TICKETS

DEFRAUDING THE MACHINE.

TWO MEN AKBESTED.

Tio temptation to posies* some of the stream cf forty odd thousand pounds that ha» flowed through, that fascinating apparatus at Ellerelie, the totalisator, has been too strong for somebody this winter meeting, something like £300 having been obtained from the machine by means of forged tickets. The knowledge that they were being defrauded caused the officials to adopt certain extra mean* of identifying the genuine tickets. After the sixth race yesterday a man presented several tickets for payment, two of which excited suspicions and the individual in question was arrested. Another man presented a ticket which also caused the machine people some doubt and he was told to call next morning at Mr H. Hayr's office on Highstreet. Upon arrival he was somewhat disconcerted to find Detective Bollis waiting to escort him io {he police station. At the Police Court this morning William Arthur Boberts, a man of about 37, was charged with forging a totalisator ticket, and uttering it at> EUersiie Racecourse to a totalisator official named Coppard. Chief-Detective Marsack formally applied for a remand of eight days. Mr W. X Hackett, who appeared for the accused, said his client was a labourer living in Vincent-street, and applied for bail- He said Roberts had been living in Auckland for the past ten years. Mr Marsack did not object, but asked for sureties. He remarked that some hundreds of pounds had been paid away on false tickets during the week. Mr Hackett said he had notTTmg to hide and he might tell the Bench there and then that the defence would be that the tickets presented by Roberts were purchased in the ordinary way at the totalisator window. The Justices—Dr. Cowlan and Mr H. E. Rountree—fixed bail at two sureties of £25, or one of £50. Emanuel Cyril Martin, the man who was arrested this morning, was charged with a similar offence, except that in his case the uttering was to H. ilayr.

Mr Hackett., who appeared for this accused, also applied for bail, and said the defence was the same as in Roberts' case. Mr Marsack asked for sureties which were fixed at an amount similar to the previous case. Bot'a ucused were remanded for eight days.