Change to sketch denied in court

Press, 26 July 1986, Page 4

Change to sketch denied in court

PA Wellington A man accused of forgery told the police he would not have altered anything els beautiful as a Goldie sketch by adding a signature, the District Court at Lower Hutt was told. A prosecution witness, Detective Phillip Richard Lloyd Frost, said Karl Sim denied adding signatures to or interfering with a number of sketches by the artists, C. F. Goldie, Rita Angus and John Gully. Karl Feodor Sim, aged 62, a wine shop manager and former art dealer, has pleaded not guilty to 48 charges — 25 of forgery, 20 of uttering, and three other fraud charges. The trial, in its fifth week, is before Judge Rabone. Mr Bruce Squire appears for the Crown and Mr Ken Bailey for Sim. Mr Frost said the police searched Sim’s Foxton shop and house in August, 1984. Mr Frost examined an office record book in Sim’s office. Some time later he returned to the office where Sim worked and looked at the record book again. He noticed the writing on one page had been scribbled over so that It could not be read. The writing appeared to relate to a Mr Porter who had bought two Goldie sketches from Sim. He

asked Sim what had been written on that page. Sim said he did not know. Sim was also asked if he added signatures to or tampered with a number of works. He said he had not. He described many of the works as extremely beautiful and accomplished pieces of art Sim told the police that a newspaper dated 1918 in his possession had belonged to Hector McDonald, who was also the source of a number of Goldie sketches. Mr McDonald died seven or eight years previously. Under cross-examina-tion, Mr Frost said he had not looked at Sim’s office record book page by page, but he thought a page that had been scribbled on would have stood out. Mr Frost did not think the page could have slipped by unnoticed on his first Inspection. Mr Bailey asked Mr Frost, the officer in charge of the Sim investigation, if he forwarded to the defence a full list of all material witnesses interviewed by the police who would not be called as prosecution witnesses. Mr Frost said he had. The trial is continuing.

More court reports, Page 6