Trial Of Accountant

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31941, 19 March 1969, Page 26

Trial Of Accountant

(N.Z. Press Association)

AUCKLAND, March 18.

Fourteen witnesses gave evidence in the Supreme Court at Auckland today at the trial of Ronald Noel Cooke, aged 42, an accountant, who has pleaded not guilty to 29 charges of false pretences involving a total of $67,705. The charges cover the period May 13, 1963, to August 18, 1966, and in each case involves the alleged false pretence that the firm Printed Business Forms, Ltd, was financially sound. Mr Justice Speight is presiding at the trial and there is a jury of eight men and four women.

Mr J. S. Alexander appears for Cooke, and Mr D. S. Morris and Mr W. D. Baragwanath represent the Crown. Graham Everard Crawford said he had seen Cooke as a result of an advertisement Cooke had said Printed Business Forms, Ltd, was expanding rapidly He wanted a loan for the purchase of equipment He gave Cooke a cheque for £lOOO in April, 1965, the loan to be for three months. Cooke gave him a written guarantee.

Mr Crawford said that he expected the money back in June and when it did not arrive he went to see Cooke. Cooke told him that when he did not come for the

money on June 30 he presumed Mr Crawford wanted it left in and he had reinvested it for a further month. Mr Crawford said he had got none back. William Henry Hopkins, an engineer, said he invested £lOOO at 15 per cent a year in June, 1966; Cooke gave his personal guarantee. Mr Hopkins said he never received a penny of any sort. Allan Sutcliffe, a pensioner, said that as a result of an advertisement he and hiS wife saw Cooke. The witness wanted to know if the 12 per cent offered was a “real thing.” Cooke said it was perfect and the firm was making a lot of money. Cooke said new equipment was needed. Mr Sutcliffe asked what would happen if things went wrong and he said Cooke showed him papers of other companies and said that if one went bankrupt the others would come to its aid.

The witness said he believed every word Cooke told him since Cooke was a public accountant.

Mr Sutcliffe gave Cooke a

Post Office Savings Bank cheque for £l2OO.

He said his wife mentioned they had money in Broadlands Finance Company. Cooke suggested that it would be better getting 12 per cent. They got £l5OO from Broadlands in four cheques. Mrs Sutcliffe said they had intended to use the £l5OO in Broadlands to go to England and wanted somewhere to put it for a year. They gave this to Cooke.

They decided to make a trip to Fiji and asked Cooke for £5OO. He said to go ahead and make the arrangements. They went to Fiji without getting any money. Mrs Sutcliffe wrote to Cooke but got no answer.

Mrs Sutcliffe said her sis-ter-in-law sent her £2OO to help them get hack. As soon as they returned she went to see Cooke. She told him how distressing it was of him to let them go to a foreign country without money.

Mrs Sutcliffe said Cooke kept saying, “I know, I know.” He gave no reason.