Two Accused For Trial On False Pretences Charges

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29334, 13 October 1960, Page 10

Two Accused For Trial On False Pretences Charges

(New Zealand Prase Association!

WELLINGTON, October 12. Claude T anham, aged 56. a grader operator, had said he had submitted incorrect time dockets Joe hired plant on the instructions of a Ministry of Works overseer said a police witness in the Magistrate's Court at Wellington today. Lanham (Mr G. L. Rose and Mr I. A. Borrin) and four other men are appearing on charges relating tn the alleged misuse of public money during the construction of Wellington airport. Lanham and John Edward Gilmore, aged 59, a former Ministry of Works overseer, were today committed to the Supreme Court for trial on 10 joint charges of false pretences. Detective R. N. Lark said that on July 2 he interviewed Lanham and showed him a series of daily time dockets in respect of work done by a T6OO grader owned by F. and J. Bognuda, Ltd. Lanham admitted the dockets were in his handwriting and bore his signature. He was told the police had information which showed that during the periods in question the grader was on some occasions under repair or on private hire, and therefore could not have worked for the Ministry of Works, During a subsequent interview Lanham said that, if repairs had been carried out on the grader on March 3. 1959, he could not explain the machine hours entered on the time docket. Lanham, according to Detective Lark, said he filled in other time dockets because Gilmore told him to. He did not know why Gilmore should tell him to falsify dockets, but he had heard Gilmore was “getting a rake off” from contractors at Rongotai.

The witness said that Gilmore, when interviewed, said he told Lanham to submit the dockets for the T6OO grader because there was time owing by the Ministry of Works for other Bognuda machines used at Rongotai. Ronald William Small, a foreman, said that in 1959 he was a Ministry of Works charge hand on the Rongotai project and under the supervision of Gilmore. Part of his duties was to certify daily

time dockets which he obtained from machine operators. • To Mr Birks, the witness sad . that a daily time docket dated May 5. 1959. showed that a Bog- ' nuda T6OO grader worked for nine hours at Evans Bay on that day. ; He certified the docket, but could not swear the grader worked during.the hours stated. When , signing dockets he had to accept • the word of the machine operators or that of his senior officer, Gil- • more. , The witness was shown five other time dockets—Crown ex- • hibits—and agreed he had certified . them. , Witness Cross-examined To Mr Bonin, the witness said ■ that when he certified time , dockets he was not certain the certification was correct He con- ; sidered the certification procedure should be changed, but he had not mentioned this. Small, cross-examined by Gilmore, agreed that collecting time dockets from machine operators > was not an easy task, and that he ! would gladly have given it to < someone else. Gilmore and Lanham reserved . their defence, and were committed for trial. When the hearing resumed Gilmore faced 17 charges of forgery, Francis Alexander Foster. Ministry of Works deputy assistant administrative officer, was giving evidence when the Court adjourned. The liearing will continue tomorrow.