ARBUCKLE ON TRIAL.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17451, 11 May 1922, Page 9

ARBUCKLE ON TRIAL.

EXTENSIVE THEFTS ALLEGED,

VERDICT OF GUILTY.

Ir*XSS ASSOCIATION TXLJGIIASt.> WELLINGTON, May 10. John Arbuekle, ex-secretary of tho New Zealand Miners' Federation, nas charged at tho Supremo Court before his Honour, Mr Justice Ileed, and a jury, with tho theft of Federation moneys totalling over £iX)OO, and further with having mado a. false entry in one of tho l''ederatiou record books. Prisoner was represented by Mr C. A. L. Tread well.

The Crown Prosecutor (Mr Ma<_assev) in addressing tlie jury, said tho ease was a. simple one. There wero ten charges in all, dealing with specific cheques, ut" which eight represented moneys collected from various unions on behalf of tho tinkers at llroken Hill, while the remaining cheques represented dues forwarded to tho Federation by tho l'ukemiro Union. Arbuckle had been appointed secretary and treasurer of the. Coal, Gold, Shale and Tunnel Workers' Federation (generally known r.s the Miners' Federation) on July Ist, 1919, and continued in that office till August 2Stli, but a. littlo over two years. It was his duty to collect all moneys received by tho Federation either by wav of "levies mado upon members of tKo various unions on behalf of the strikeis at Broken Hill or as dues from uuioiia. Tho whole of tho moneys so collected should have been paid by him into the Federation's account at the. To Aro branch of tho Bank of New Zealand. Arbuekle left for Sydney on August. iUth, and Air Peter O'Rourke, previously president of tho Federation, was appointed secretary aud treasurer in his stead, and tho new socretary aud tho old met and discussed tl\e taking over of the books, otc. Arbuekle produced tho "pav in" book to »liow that tho whole of the money had been paid into the bank up to December 24th, 1920, and when questioned as to tho whereabouts of the other records, ho said he had taken them to Mr Glover (of tho "jMaoriland 'Worker" office) to be checked, and assured O'Rourko they were all right. However, Arbuekle was subsequently told that no hooka and records could bo found, and then he admitted that ho had kept only a statement of incomo and expenditure and petty cash. A shortage of £SO -was noticed in connexion with id recent couferonco of delegates, and when the shortage was pointed out to accused, ho replied that "some of tho delegates must have put it up on bim for £o0." It was pointed out that that was impossible, whereupon ho answered that he "must have gone drunk on himself for £50." Ho had sent all his money to Australia, ho said, but he would send £6O back, or would bring it when ho returned in about three weeks' time. Nothing further was heard of Arbucklo till ho was arrested in February, but in the meantimo investigations at Wellington and lengthy correspondence' had established that there -were remarkable shortages in the sums received or alleged to have been received by Arbuekle. On January 18th, IS2I, Arbuekle, tho Crown alleged, drew an open cheque for £350 to be remitted to the Broken Hill fund officials, but I that cheque was cashed on February 13th by Arbuekle, and no money was sent to Australia. On January 20th, £IOO was stolen in the samo manner; on February ]!2tli, £l5O. on Marcli 12th £IOO, on April 4th £3OO, on April 29th £3OO, on May 7th £JU3 10s Gd, and on May 16th £3OO, the method alleged to havo been followed by Arbuekle being tho samo in each caso. Open cheques were drawn and were cashed, but no money was sent to Broken Hill. The sum of £129 14s mentioned in the ninth charge represented moneys received from tho Puicemiro Minors' Union by way of union dues, that sum being received by aocused about a month before lie loft for Australia. He sent a receipt to tho Union but tho money was never paid into the bank. The original receipt sent to the Union showed the full amount received, but a duplicato receipt retained by accused had been altered to £65 15s 9d, a shortage of £69 18s 3d, though, as previously stated, no part of the original sum was paid into the bank. Tho second amount recoived from the Pukemiro Union, £SO 8s 6d 1 the subject of the tenth chargo, was recoived by Arbuekle on August 26th per money order, but no payjnent was mad© into th© bank. Tlio remaining chargo, Mr Macassey explained, concerned the falsification ot a receipt form from £125 14s to £oo for tho dcfenco said that tho Federation's accounts were in such a stato of muddlo and laxity that tho accountants were unable to straighten them. Arbucklo was a pick and shovel mau, and an unfair burden had; been placed upon him by liis being dragged from the depths of a coalmine and expected to instantly become a trained accountant. Ho had kept certain sums of money to pay salaries, office expenses, expenses of delegates to conferences, • and daily expenses. ■ , His Honour said that Arbucklo had made no daily expenditure on delegates / account, and had kept no books,, as suggested by counsel. Mr Treadwell contended that the I looso sheets and records produced had only to be bound to become a book. That the prisoner had said he must havo got drunk on some of the money was a suggestion as to the ghastly state .of the affairs of tho Federation, which expected an untrained man to act as an accountant and keep accurate records of sums aggregating between £9OOO and £IO,OOO. Counsel submitted that Arbuekle had acted in sheer ignorance of tho consequences involved by careless methods in drawing money from tho bank or accounting lor its disbursement. An audit was made in July, 1921, and accounts wero found to be correct, aud the amounts missing could easily have "one without any intention to steal. ° His Honour said it was a curious thing that one could be ablo to mako an audit without books. His Honour charged tho jury that they must return a verdict not on counsel's statement, but upon tho evidence. From January to August, 1921, £2OOO had disappeared. Every time Arbucklo drew a cheque, it was done for tho specific purpose of remitting money to Broken Hill, but tho money had never reached tho miners for whom it had been intended. As for using tho money to pay the expenses of delegates, his Honour reminded the jury that they had not begun to meet until July, 1921, so that contention seemed unreasonable. His Honour drew attention to the alterations in the duplicate book—a page had been torn out of tho book. After an absence of half-an-hour, tho foreman returned and asked whether the destruction of the receipt book, both the original and the carboncopies, constituted a false declaration. His Honour said the jury must satisfy themselves as to whether th« alteration of the carbon copy and tho destruction of tho receipt book were done with the intention of committing a fraud.

The jury returned a verdict of guilty on ail counts. Accused will bo sentenced on Friday. When delivering tlie verdict, the foroouin informed ■ his Honour that ho was desired by his colleagues on the jury to express their \icry strong condemnation of the laxity and carelessnebs shown .by. tho. Federation, in hooping its accounts and handling cash. Hid Honour said ho would havo tho I sentiments of the jury on the subject ventilated. ,<