Allegations made against peer

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32588, 23 April 1971, Page 9

Allegations made against peer

(N.Z.P/A.-Reuter—Copyright)

LONDON, April 22.

A Liberal peer, Lord Moynihan, aged 35, was involved in a series of frauds involving banks, airlines, restaurants and other businesses, it was alleged at the Old Bailey yesterday.

But Moynihan, who once divorced a Malayan belly dancer to marry the niece of a Philippines diplomat, was not in court to hear the charges. He is still somewhere in Spain, where, in October 1969, he was honoured bv General Franco for his “signal services to Spain.” Prosecuting counsel (Mi John Buzzard) alleged that Moynihan provided a reference under a false name for Carlo Spetale, aged 24, to open a bank account, also under a false name. Later, airline tickets worth more than £l5OO were purchased on that account.

Spetale was sentenced to a years imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to pay £5O costs for his part in the frauds. Detective-Inspector David Woodland told the court that Spetale was very much under the influence of Moynihan.

Counsel for Spetale (Mr Leonard Caplan) asked the inspector: “Would it be true to say that Moynihan exercised an almost Svengali-like influence on him?

“It would,” the inspector replied. Passing sentence, Mr Justice Humphreys commented: “It is said that you were under the influence of a person no longer living in this country. I totally accept that. You are a weak and easilyimpressed character. You were conned by him.”

Peter Scaramanaga, aged 37 who admitted eight charges, including evading or defer ring debts at a London restaurant and being an undischarged bankrupt trading under an assumed name, was also convicted. He was said to the a voluntary patient in a sanatorium, suffering from schizophrenia. Sentence on him was postponed until Friday.