EX-CONSTABLE'S CASE

Evening Post, Volume LXXIX, Issue 110, 11 May 1910, Page 3

EX-CONSTABLE'S CASE

M'DERMGTT FOUND GUILTY OF FORGERY. A SERIES OF OFFENCES. YESTERDAY'S PROCEEDINGS. After the Post wont to press yesterday, the hearing of the charges of forgery and uttering against William Patrick M'Dermott was continued before his Honour the Chief Justice. Mr. Myers prosecuted, and Mr. Webb appeared for accused. Peter M'lntyre, captain of the Stormbird, gave evidence that in answer to a request for £2 contained in a letter signed "W. Webb," Wanganui, he had left £2 at the shop of G. Mcc, Lamb-ton-quay, In an envelope addressed to "G. West." The letter was called for later by a little boy. William Webb denied having written the letter iv question. William Richard #Thomas, a boy residing at Clyde-quay, said he knew the accused. He first met him on the railway wharf. Accused gave him a letter to deliver at the Wellington Hotel, for which he got 6d. Witness also delivered a letter for accused at M. T. Mowbray's, Lambton-quay. Later witness called again at Mowbray's to see whether there was a letter there for Mr. West. Accused told witness that his name was West. Witness also went to Mee's shop for letters. Accused made appointments to meet the boy at the wharf. Evidence was given by a clerK in the Post Office Savings Bank that accused had chashed an order for £10 (the ono issued to Mrs. Quinn). George Nash, dairyman, denied writing a letter (produced), requesting George Pearce for the loan of £3. The letter requested Mr. Nash to leave the £3 at Mrs. Thompson's shop opposite the Lambton-quay railway station. Oney Higgins, expressman, gave evidence that he had received a letter signed "H. Cutts," and requesting him to leave £3 at Mrs. Mowbray's, Lamb-ton-quay. Witness, amidst much laughter, said he- knew the letter was "crook," and took no notice of it. Detective Andrews, who arrested the accused, said he charged him with the six offences on 23rd February. Accused made no reply. Witness searched the place where accused lived. He found a quantity of note paper and a number of envelopes. The paper and the envelopes appeared to be the same as that on which the alleged forged letters were written and enclosed. Sergeant Dart, in charge of the police training depot, said he knew the accused when he was in the depot, from 20th March, 1908, to 14th May. He produced a specimen of accused's handwriting at that time. This specimen and the exhibits in the case were shown to Mr. Hickson, accountant in the Bank of New South Wales, who gave evidence that he considered they were written by one man. Accused called a man named Fennesy to give evidence on his behalf — a man who was awaiting trial on a criminal charge — but when the witness entered the box ho said he -would decline to give evidence, as he "had been misinformed as to the facts." The judge said that the witness could not decline to give evidence, but accused said that under the circumstances he would not ask any questions. Accused gave evidence on his own behalf. He said that 'on 22nd January he left for Auckland on receipt of a letter from Mr. J. J. O'Brien, in reference to floating a. syndicate for goldmining purposes in New South Wales. He returned from Auckland on the 25th, arriving in Wellington on the 26th. He denied having written any of the letters produced. The story of the boy Thomas was untrue. Accused had noticed the boy on the wharf when he had been fishing. Accused knew none of the witnesses who had allegedly written the letters. Cross-examined by Mr N Myers : Accused said he had been a policeman for about three months. It was true this was the first suggestion that he had made of an alibi, and that he could not have committed the alleged offences owing to his being in Auckland at the time they were committed. He could only conclude that the boy Thomas had mistaken him for some, one else. He admitted that he had served two terms of imprisonment in New South Wales for forgery. He denied that he owned the pocket-book (produced), or that he was the writer, of the torn letter (produced), which had been found in a room in the house in which he lived. To Mr. Webb : Prisoner said that he had committed the offences for which he had been sentenced in New South Wales at a time when he had family troubles to contend with. His Honour in summing up said the only defence practically that had beep set up in the case was that of an alibi. The court had laid it down that an alibi had to be conclusively proved. In this case there had been no attempt to get witnesses from Auckland to confirm accused's statement. Then the phraseology of the letters was the same, and it was the same as that of the torn letter found in accused's house. Then the expert, Mr. Hickson, said that the writing in the police report and that in the letters in the case had been done by one and the same man. As sensible men he asked the jury how, if this man was innocent, he had not mentioned the name of anyone who had seen him in Auckland or the name of the house where he had stayed. Why had he not done so? The evidence of the clerk in the Post Office Savings Bank remained uncontroverted. The jury retired at 4 p.m., and 'returned half an hour later with a verdict of guilty on all counts. ABOUT A PROMISSORY NOTE. M'Dermott was then charged with having on 11th December last forged a promissory note purporting to be signed by John M'Gregor and endorsed by H. J. Baker, and with having utteTe'd same to William M'Lean, of the Empire L,oan Company, and received a sum of £2 ss, by means of false pretences. William M'Lean, secretary of the Empire Loan and Discount Company, said that accused called at his office on 11th December, about 11 a.m. He wanted £2 ss, and stated that he had obtained employment at the Wellington power-house. Witness said he would have to get some one to endorse the promissory note. Accused asked witness if he knew H. J. Baker, tailor, of Willis-street. Witness said he did, and that Mr. Baker's endorsement would do. Witness made out a promissory note for the amount, and accused left. He returned in about ten minutes with the note endorsed and a letter purporting to have been, signed by H. J. Baker, and stating that accused was employed at the power-house at £3 5s per week. Accused gave the name of John M'Gregor. To Mr. Webb : Witness had no doubt whatever that accused was the man who had called at his office, gave the name of John M'Gregor, and received £2 se. Walter Brook Taylor, employed by the Empire Loan Company, gave corroborative evidence. H. J. Baker, tailor, denied that he had endorsed the promissory note forming the basis of this case. Evidence was given that accused had never been employed at the City Cor-

por-ation's power-house, at least not for ■the last six years. Detective Andrews stated that when accused was arrested he said: "I don't know anything about the charge; I was never in M'Lean's office." Accused's counsel called Robert Anderson, bottle-gatherer, who said he knew M'DeTmott, and got some bottles from him before last Christmas. He 'thought it was about the 11th December. Witness called for the bottles about 10 a.m., and was talking to accused for about a couple of hours. At the time M'Dermott was mending some boots. M'Dermott could not have been away in the morning between 10 and 12 on the 11th December without witness knowing it. His Honour : You are sure of the day ? Did you make a note of it? Witness : No, I did not make a note of it. Mr. Myers : Were you friendly with M'Dermott. Witness: Yes. You say you had a two hours' talk in the yard — was it the gaol yard? Haven't you talked to him there since both of you were committed for trial on different charges? Witness said something that was not clearly audible, and his Honour then asked accused if he had spoken to M'Dermott in gaol. Witness admitted that he had. Mr. Myers asked the witness some further questions, but failed to elicit any answers. Accused, in evidence, stated that he was at home all morning and until 12.20 p.m. on the morning of Saturday, 11th December. He denied that he had ever been in the Empire Loan Company's office, and persisted in this denial under cross-examination by Mr. Myers. In summing up, his Honour said that there had to be a reasonable doubt before the prisoner could get the benefit of it. The suggestion was that the alibi was a story concocted in the gaol yard. It was for the jury to decide that point. , The jury retired at 6 o'clock, and five minutes later brought in a verdict of guilty. Sentence was deferred. GUILT ADMITTED. There were two further charges against M'Dermott. In each it was alleged that he had forged a demand for payment of £10, and had acted on these as genuine to obtain money. One of these letters purported to be sent from John Alfred Farmer to Joseph. Ames, and contained instructions for the entering of a racehorse in several big events m Australia. These instructions were acted on, and the entries had subsequently to be cancelled by cable. To each of these charges the prisoner pleaded guilty. Prisoner's counsel called Mr. Aitken, stationmaster, and Mr. Cummings, coaching-foreman, at Lambton Rail-way Station. Each witness said the prisoner had given every satisfaction while employed on the railways. His Honour deferred sentence unLn Saturday.