FALSE PRETENCES

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21445, 10 April 1935, Page 9

FALSE PRETENCES

THREE MEN CHARGED

VALUELESS CHEQUES ISSUED

Joint charges against three men of obtaining by false pretences sums amounting to £3O were heard in the Magistrate's Court yesterday, before Mr E. D. Mosley, S.M.

Auguste John Barberel (Mr E. S. Bowie), Victor Slater (Mr R. Twyncham), and William Frcncy Kcenan pleaded guilty to the following charges: Obtaining from Thomas Stack at Christchurch on March 23 the sum of £6 by false pretences; falsely representing that a cheque drawn on the Bank of Australasia, Christchurch, in favour of J. Black, signed by J. S. Lennic and Thomas E. Chappel for £6 was a good and valid order.

Obtaining on March 25 at Kaiapoi from William Clark one bottle of brandy, valued at 16s 3d, and £6 3s 9d in money by a similar false pretence.

Obtaining on March 25 at Belfast from Rhoda Ruth Smith, by a similar false pretence, one half-bottle of brandy, valued at 7s 6d, and £l6 12s 6d in money. Chief-Detective W. H. Dunlop said that as far as could be ascertained the names used on the cheques were fictitious.

Barberel was further charged with stealing, on March 13, live bank cheque forms, valued at Is, the properly of Weeks, Ltd. Chief-Detective W. H. Dunlop said that the accused Barberel had occasion to go to a printing works, and while there he obtained five cheque forms which were being printed for an insurance company. The cheques were not quite completed; they bore no serial number and had not been perforated. The accused had adopted an ingenious method when passing the cheques. One of them had appeared with bandages on his head, making it appear that the cheques had been issued by the insurance company for injuries received in an accident. They had had no difficulty in passing the cheques. Kcenan further pleaded guilty to obtaining from Saul Simons at Auckland a pair of shoes, valued at 17s 6d, and 18s in money, by falsely representing that a cheque drawn on the Union Bank of Australia, Auckland, and signed by W. F. Keenan, for £6 10s. was a good and valid order. He was also charged with and pleaded guilty to obtaining from Peter Babich, on May 24', 1934, at Hamilton, fish and chips to the value of 2s and £2 7s Gd in money, by false pretences.

On rtich of the joint charges Barberel was sentenced to six months' imprisonment, Slater one month's, and Keenan six months' imprisonment with hard labour, the last-named's sentences on the first two charges to be cumulative.

On the charge of stealing bank Cheque forms Barberel was sentenced to 24 hours' imprisonment with i -rd labour. On the two individual charges of false pretences Keenan was sentenced to seven days' and three months' imprisonment with hard labour.