SERVED IN FOREIGN LEGION

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 August 1933, Page 10

SERVED IN FOREIGN LEGION

DRUG ADDICT ACCUSED. LONDON, July 6. Robert Fiancis Le Dillon Fitzgibbon, 48, independent, was charged at Marlborough Street yesterday with lerging and uttering a cheque for £l3/7/6, with, intent to defraud Messrs Leighton, jewellers, Burling-ton-arcade, W„ and alternatively with obtaining a gold cigarette case, valued at £l3/7/6, from Messrs Leighton by false pretences, with intent to defraud. Viscount Dillon was pi esent in Con rt. Mr Claude Hornby, for Fitzgibbon, said he now pleaded guilty to the second charge. Detective Searle stated that Fitzgibbon called on Messis Leighton and had a conversation about antique silver. He said he was Lord Dillon. He selected the cigarette case and asked the shopkeeper to cash a cheque which ho wrote out and signed in the name of Dillon. “Prisoner,” added witness, “is a married man living apart from his wife. He has two sons, aged 16 and 19. Throughout the war he served as a. naval officer. He was demobilised and' placed on the Emergency List with the rank of lieut.-commandcr. His war service was excellent. “From 1919 to 1921 he was engaged with a. French cotton firm in Paris. From 1922 to .192(1 he served as an officer in the French Foreign Legion. He saw active service in Morocco and Algiers, and e was awarded the French Legion of Honour and the Croix do Guerre on the field of battle.” Latterly prisoner had been living bv his wits. lie had been staying at goodclass hotels and obtaining goods from West-end tradesmen knowing ho had not the means to meet his liabilities. He had been made bankrupt. He was

■ drug addict and had been for Hie last ten years. Mr Hornby said that accused was a second cousin of Lord Dillon. He was for a. considerably lime heavily addicted to morphia. The amount had Icon so ieduced that he hardly took i at. all now. Accused was remamfed.