Goldcorp man ‘would return to fight’

Press, 31 August 1989, Page 6

Goldcorp man ‘would return to fight’

NZPA Washington The former Goldcorp chairman, Mr Ray Smith, who is under threat of deportation from the United States, said yesterday he would voluntarily return to New Zealand to fight any criminal charges that might be laid by fraud squad detectives investigating his company’s collapse. Breaking his recent news media silence, Mr Smith vehemently denied any wrongdoing in the affairs of Goldcorp, and also rejected United States immigration charges against him. “I have never done anything wrong at all. I have never broken the law knowingly and I have not absconded with one goddamned cent of money,” Mr Smith said in a telephone interview from his home in Park City, Utah. Mr Smith was released on Tuesday after being arrested last Friday on a charge of working in the United States without a permit. He said the treatment given him by immigration officials “would not have happened to an ordinary person.”

The New Zealander, aged 40 who entered the United States in May, was hustled into custody before a television camera, and denied bail until he appeared before an Immigration and Naturalisation Service judge on Tuesday. “To be publicly handcuffed and treated in that fashion is a frightening thing. It’s the fear for your family that is worse,” he said. Mr Smith will face a deportation hearing on the immigration charge on a date yet to be set, later this year. Mr Smith said he had phoned Detective Inspector lan Hastings of the Auckland Fraud Squad a month ago and had a “friendly chat” about an investigation reported to be under way into Mr Smith’s .activities in Goldcorp. Mr Hastings said on Tuesday it was still uncertain whether a criminal prosecution would be taken against Mr Smith, who has been publicly blamed by some Goldcorp investors for the scale and nature of losses.

“I will voluntarily return to fight

charges if he should choose to prosecute me,” Mr Smith said.

Asked why he would not return anyway to clarify matters, Mr Smith said, “If I thought anything would be gained from it, I would but I don’t see that it would.”

At pains to explain his view of events leading up to Goldcorp’s receivership,' Mr Smith said problems stemmed largely from the company’s predominant activity as a property investor. Its gold division — the only area he had direct control of — was a relatively small part of the business. After a boardroom showdown, Mr Smith was deposed as chairman and managing director of the division in February, 1988. “Up to the time I was kicked out of the company, it (the division) was making a profit, though the jewellery division was making a loss because it was an off-season. All the bullion trading operations were very profitable.”

Asked about a shortfall between investors’ gold deposits and the company’s

stocks that was revealed by receivers, Mr Smith said, “I was always under the very clear impression that if the company ever got into trouble all of those gold holders would get their money (back) regardless of whether the gold was physically in the vaults or whether the cash was used in another asset that would be realised.” Mr Smith said he was not aware of any money being taken out of the company. “Allegations that there is $25 million missing are absurd... the receivers have not had any such statement.”

© United States Customs officers have rejected as “nonsense” allegations that a helicopter in the possession of Mr Smith might have been used to import gold bullion.

Jim Wetzel, a Customs Service Salt Lake City criminal investigator, said yesterday the matter had been looked into but investigators concluded last Friday the allegation was “nonsense.” The service was taking no further action, he said.