THE MARY BRADY FRAUDS

Evening Star, Issue 17312, 27 March 1920, Page 10

THE MARY BRADY FRAUDS

£30,000 IX FIVE YEARS. CRESCENDO OF EXTRAVAGANCE. Miss Maryßrady. a pretty Manchester cashier, who is now undergoing a sentence of 12 months' imprisonment for frauds on her employers—Messrs Thos. Thoresen nml Co., of Manchester and Cbristiauia—told in the Manchester Bankruptcy Court in January how she acquired and spent a sum of £"30,000 in five years. Attended by two wardresses (says the 'Sunday Chronicle'), Miss Brady was attired in the rich costume which* she wore during her tria) at the Assizes at the end of November. This w«-w of claret-colored velvet, trimmed with fur, with toque to matcl:. _ Counsel cross - examining her stated that the total amount of nmnev she had had "to play with" during the period under review was £35.055. "" Of this, he added, £15,140 could not be traced, as it had not been paid through a bank. —Losses at Cards.— "I suggest," he said, "there has been a sort, of crescendo of extravagance." Miss Brady: That is so. In three vears I spent about £s,ooo—or less than £2.000 a vcm In 1916-17 it would be something like £7.C00 in the two years. Mainly represented 'by Thoresen's? Yes. From April 1 to December 31, 1918, vou appear to have disposed vf £7,410, and in the following six months nearly £10,000? —\es. Nothing like that sum lias been spent on dress?—lt was not only dress or jewellery, or furs. There was the house that I joought, too. How snueh money do vou think you lost at cards during the fiist six months of ofi J' ear -—J think altogether between £2,000 and £3,000. Mr Gibsonj You know vou had something like £aO,GOO in the last rive vears. lhat is a lot of money to dispose of. I mean £30,000 clear apart from the borrowing.—Well, I have given you all the oarI tietilars I possibly can. | " During 'the six months before your j career was stopped," said Mr Gibson. j"you extracted, from Thoresena and disposed of very neatly £IO,OOO. Nothing iike that was spent* by you on dresses and things of that description in that period." Miss Brady retorte'cl that it was not onlv dresses, but jewellery and furs. There was also the house in Victoria Park, and she lost £I,BOO on the jewellery shop sho bought. She thought she had lost between £2,U00 and £3,000 in the six months. She disagreed with the suggestion that it was nearer £IO,OOO.