Man jailed after bank error

Press, 28 November 1979, Page 5

Man jailed after bank error

A 28-year-old man who took advantage of an error made by a bank teller which resulted in his being paid 811,000 in cash, instead of 81100, was convicted and sentenced to nine months in prison when he appeared before Mr J. S. Bisphan, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday on a charge of theft. Stephen Charles Goddard, a driver, admitted stealing 89900, the property of the Bank of New Zealand, on September 3. Sergeant M. P. Caldwell said at 3 p.m. on September 3. Goddard had gone to the bank and had made inquiries about withdrawing $llOO from his account. He had earlier reporter that his bank book had been lost. Goddard had filled in a withdrawal slip and had presented it to another teller who had paid him $ll,OOO in, cash, said Sergeant Caldwell. ( Soon after the teller dis-1 covered her error which had

i occurred through the withr.drawal slip being made out i [with 811,000 written in fig-[ liures and $llOO in words. ’ When located at AshburIkon, Goddard at first had dei nied being overpaid but later ■ admitted that he had, and .[that he had decided to keep :ithe money. f i With the money he had purchased two cars. , Sergeant Caldwell said that compensation of $4600 ; had already been repaid to J-the bank and that the titles (on the two cars had been .(signed over to the bank. In imposing the prison , term the Magistrate said it ' would be cumulative to the ((existing term of 18 months ! .[Goddard was now serving. ( He said it was a great! ’(pity that Goddard should: (have been placed in such a ([position of temptation. The Magistrate said that '■the defendant, who had “an! [appalling record of con-; Ivictions,” now faced a very (serious charge. I 1 He accepted that the of-

fence had not been pre-) meditated and that there j was no way Goddard could j have got away with it. Counsel (Mr S. G. Barker) ■ said his client was sent to prison for 18 months in October. Originally Goddard was to (have defended the charge : yesterday but Mr Barker ■said his client wished to change his plea. Mr Barker said the of-’ jfence was due in part to a certain negligence on the part of the bank. Goddard had been asked if) he wanted the money in 'cash and had been handed a ’large number of notes. Initially his client had not i realised how much he had been paid. Mr Barker said com-! pensation had already been 1 made to the bank. He said Goddard, who had a. great drug and alcohol' problem, had already spent) nine years and a half of the last 10 years in prison.