HELD BY LENDER

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21093, 13 May 1943, Page 4

HELD BY LENDER

SECURITY CERTIFICATES

FIRST CASE IN DISTRICT

FINES dN SIX CHARGES

Described as the first case of its kind in the district,. Samuel ,Dudley bypcearled against, in the Gisborne Magistrate's Court yesterday on eight charges under the Social Security Act of accepting pensioner and social security benefit certificates as securities, bn loans’, Two of tlie charges were withdrawn, and the defendant, through Mr. L. T.Burnard, pleaded guilty to,the. remainder of .the charges, on each of which he was fined 10s and costs.

Detective-Sergeant R. FI. Waterson said that the certificates hnr» r " 1 seription that it. was an offence for thernto.be held .as a security. 'i.to defendant had taken them as securities. against loans made to the beneficiaries.

Mr. Burnard said that the defendant had accepted the certificates iii complete ignorance of the fact that he... was ..committing,,an, offence. In law a. pension certificate, .did not constitute a security, the object of the defendant ..in. liolding them ..being_.for the convenience of the. pensioners and also of himself, because if the pensioners mislaid their Certificates a delay in payment \yould be caused. It suitecl . both the . .borrower arid trie defendant, for tlie defendant to Hbld the .certificates. The defehdant. never tried to exercise any .right over the certificates. As it was the. first case of its kind in- the district, counsel asked that it should be treated as a test case. .