NOTE FORGERY.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume IV, Issue 139, 29 May 1914, Page 2

NOTE FORGERY.

£l5OO SWINDLE. AN ARTISTIC CRIME. Sydney, May 22. Since the passing of 150 bogus Bank of New Zealand ten-pound notes in Auckland recently, special police investigations have been made all over Australia. The swindle, it will he remembered, was carried into effect on Easter Saturday and Monday. It was nor until 150 notes had been exchanged for cash with various business people than the bank people learned of the forgery. This forgery is one of the cleverest <:f its kind yet committed, and it is possible that some of the counterfeit notes, which are printed on Waterlow's paper crinkled by use, and constitjite wonderful copies oi the originals, may be further circulated. All those so far collected have been numbered “ 169,948.” Detective - superintendent Roche yesterday said: "Soon after the detection of the fraud the InspectorGeneral received from the New Zealand police a cable stating that two men suspected of the forgery might have l left for Sydney by the Riverina, which arrived some weeks ago. Our detectives boarded the vessel before she berthed, hut the suspected men were not traced. They are thought to be Amerieanis-ed-jews. One is about 45 years old, and the other about 23. " Since then,” added Mr. Roche, “inquiries have been made at the various Sydney banks, and some ot the imitation notes have been distributed for identification purposes.” The manage’’ of the Bank of New Zealand saicl that the counterfeits could easily deceive the public. They were so deceptive that even the officers of other banks might overlook the fraud. Knowing their own notes so well, however, he considered a teller in his bank would easily detect the imitation. A city engraver, when shown one of the notes, was amazed by the artistic work in the production. “It must have been printed from a steel plate,” he at first exclaimed. "The forger must have been a bank note engraver.” After minute scrutiny with a glass, however, he thought it possible that a press transfer had been made from an original note. He discredited any idea of photography in the production. Such fine work could not be a photograph nor could a pantograph be used with such delicate effect unless from the enlarged steel-plate engraving. AUSTRALIAN 10, NOTES. MISTAKEN FOR £lO MONEY. The police authorities are commenting on the similarity that is noticeable on a first glance between the Comm oh wealth Bank 10/- notes and some £lO notes. During the last few weeks, they say, several of these 10 - notes have been exchanged as £lO notes at the races and elsewhere.