ALLEGED THEFT OF CHEQUES.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 9992, 23 March 1898, Page 3

ALLEGED THEFT OF CHEQUES.

At the Police Court yesterday, before Messrs W. H. Cooper and J. Gapes, J.P.s, G. W. Styles Was charged, on remand, with having stolen two cheques valued at £143 6s lid and £100 respectively, from the New Zealand Farmers' Co-operative Association, on January 31st. Mr Weston appeared for the acoused, and Sergeant Major Ramsay prosecuted. George Jameson, Manager of the New Zealand Farmery Co-operative Association, deposed that the accused had been employed as an assistant in the office for seven years, and had left on the first week in February last. He was not authorised to receive any moneys. If a c-eque was handed to him by a shareholder it was his duty to pass it on to the cashier. It was not accused's duty to draw money from the Bank, but he might have had to do so occasionally. Mr G. A. Smith was a shareholder of the Association, and there were no entries of either of the sums named in the cash book as having been received from Mr Smith. The accused did not keep the book. The larger cheque was signed by Mr Allen, aud the smaller (the £100 cheque) was Mr Smith's. The writing on the body of one cheque was in Styles'* I hand. The cheques were entered in the pass 1 book in Mr Styles's handwriting, and showed that the two amounts had been received by him on January 31st to go to the credit of Mr Smith's current account. ! To Mr Weston—Styles and the cashier j (Mr Mathias) worked at the same counter, and it might have happened that Mr Styles 'received moneys from customers when Mathias was busy. It was not the practice j however. The accused's duty was to pay out cheques. Accused had the custody of cheques for considerable sums to pay to customers, and his salary had been increased at various times until it had reached £140 a year. C. H. Mathias, cashier at the Farmer** | Co-operative Association, gave corroborative evidence. Geo. A. Smith, a farmer residing at Lincoln, and a shareholder the New Zealand Fanners' Co-operative Association, deposed to receiving a cheque for £145 6i lid at the Fendalton Mill, and ho handed it to the accused at the Co-operative Association to pay into his (witness's) account. * Witness drew a cheque for £100 to bring his account to a certain amount. Accused filled it up. He also entered a receipt in the pass-book for th© cheques. J. D. Fairhurst, teller Bank New South Wales, deposed to the cheque for £14563 lid being presented and cashed. G. A. Barclay, clerk Bank New Zealand* deposed to the cheque being presented and cashed and debited to Mr Smith's account. Detective Chrystal deposed that on the 14th instant, with Detective Maraaok, he arrested the accused on the present oharge. Detective Marsack read the warrant, and accused said— *• my wife to find out when tho warrant was to issue bo that I might give myself up to the police aud avoid exposure." On the way to the police station the accused said, "Supposing I don't get out on bail will the the term elapßing between my committal and trial be counted in my sentence." Witness said, *• That is a matter entirely for the judge, who sometimes doea that." Accused further said, "I wish'they had done this before. They kept on. saying they would not take out a warrant, or .1 might have gone to Sydney on Saturday; last." Cross-examined — When accused spoke, witness did not think it necessary to caution him. Witness asked acoused no questions. The statement was voluntary. , This concluded the case for the prose* cution. Accused reserved his defence, and waa committed for trial. Mr Weston asked that the existing bail should be extended. The Bench granted the application.