CONFIDENCE TRICK

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXVI, Issue 3441, 10 March 1932, Page 8

CONFIDENCE TRICK

YOUNG MAN LOSES £2OO.

MONEY HANDED TO STRANGER. A young man from the country was deprived of £2OO by an ingenious piece of trickery during last week in Wellington. He had saved the amount over a period of nine years and was about to depart on a trip to England. In Lambton Quay he made a chance acquaintance who' eventually cheated him. The victim was asked by the stranger if he knew where the Customs office was as he wanted to fix up some business before going to London. The man from the country replied that he thought the office was somewhere toward the waterfront, remarking that strangely enough he was going to London too, and then the “confidence man” told the other that he too was going by the next Sydney boat. The two then walked down to the Customs building on Jervois Quay. The victim waited outside while the other went inside, ostensibly to transact his “business.” After he came out, the conversation turned to the question of exchange and the amount of money each would lose when they changed New Zealand currency into English notes. The "confidence man” told the other he knew a way of getting their notes changed without the necessity of any exchange being paid. The two then walked up to the City Hotel where a third man was met. He said that the notes could be changed all right. He knew a friend in the Treasury and there would be no trouble at all. The man from the country and the first “confidence” man then began to walk down to the Treasury to get the notes changed. On the way down the latter stopped at a public telephone box, saying that he was just going to ring up the Treasury to make sure that everything would be in order when they got there. .When the two reached Government Buildings in which the Treasury office is situated, the "confidence man” told the other to wait outside on Lambton Quay while he went inside to change the notes. He has not been seen since.