CHARGE OF FORGERY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XIX, Issue 83, 26 March 1929, Page 5

CHARGE OF FORGERY

ACCUSED PLEADS GUILTY.

COMMITTED FOR SENTENCE. At the Hastings Court this morning, before Messis. George Land and A. A. George J’s.P., Thomas C. Lyons, alias Lenehan, appeared on charges that (1) in Hastings, on November 27 1928, he forged the name of Janet Gibbs to a promissory note for £ll Is 6d and that he caused Henry Albert Mossman to act on it as if it was genuine; and (2) he committed a similar forgery on January ID, 1929, in the renewal of the promissory note. Detective Farquharson conducted the prosecution and Mr. W. Le Bon Helleur appeared for the accused. Henry A. Mossman, financial agent, deposed that he discounted a promissory note for the accused on November 27, 1928, for £ll Is 6d. The p.h. purported to be signed by the accused and Janet Gibbs. He had taken the signature “Janet Gibbs” as genuine, as she had previously backed a promissory note for the accused. On January 12, Lyons sent round the tees for a renewal and witness gave him a fresh p.n. which the assistant brought back with the names of the accused and Janet Gibbs on it. Witness saw Mrs Gibbs about the p.ii. and she said she would see the accused. Witness spoke to the accused, who told him the bill would be met on due date and he asked witness if he would take tyres for his car presumably as against the p.n. That was before he made the demand on Mrs Gibbs. The tyres were not suitable. The accused said that Mrs Gibbs had not signed the p.n. but Miss Gibbs had signed on her behalf. Janet Gibbs deposed that she had known the accused for the last 12 months. About October last year he asked her to back a p.n. for £5, which she did. The p.n. was for Mr. Mossman. That was subsequently met and she was not called on to pay. Somewhere about the end of January, she was called on about a p.n. and she discovered that her name had been used by the accused. She went to see the accused, but he refused to see her. She only signed one p.n. The p.n. of November 27th did not contain her signature, nor did the p.n. of January 10th .She never gave the accused authority to use her name.

Edgar L. Gigg, motor mechanic, deposed that he was employed by the accused for about six months. In November last the accused sent him to Mr Mossman for a p.n. and the accused went into his office and signed Mrs. Gibbs’ name to the p.m. (produced). The accused told witness to take it back to Mossman and get a cheque and to cash it. Witness got the cheque and cashed it. Subsequently, Mrs Gibbs called at the garage to see Lyons and. later in the day, he sent witness to Mrs Gibbs, asking her if she would take tyres in settlement of the p.n.. but she said she would do nothing of the kind. Detective Farquharson gave evidence that, on Saturday March 23, last, in consequence of a complaint, he interviewed the accused regarding the present charges. The accused practically admitted having signed Mrs Gibbs’ name to the p.n’s. He made a statement (produced) in which he admitted his guilt, and in which he said that he signed Mrs Gibbs name, because she had previously backed a p.n. for him. He sent a messenger to Mrs Gibbs for her signature, but she was not in and he was pressed for the money. The accused pleaded guilty and was committed for sentence to the Supreme Court at Wellington. Bail was refused.