GAOL OR POST OFFICE ?

NZ Truth, Issue 1030, 22 August 1925, Page 5

GAOL OR POST OFFICE ?

Prolific Punting Through Prison Portals At Mt. Eden THREE WARDERS FINED-MIKE FLYNN'S MA-IN-LAW SENT TO GAOL The underworld's system of communication has been having an easy win at : Mt Eden—^ Now punishment has come— -Mike Ffynn's Wife disturbs Magistrate— lllicit correspondence shows that Mercy Appeals and Escape Plots may be first cousins

B ■ ' ■ An audacious system of inter-communication between Mt. Ede 1 Gaol and the outside world (or under-world) has been, discovered — a system involving the transmission not only of letters but of large sums of betting money. Three prison officials — Government servants with families, and with previously good records— have been convicted and fined. Perhaps one might have pictured the possibility of a prisoner m one of our gaols smuggling out a commission to some outsider to put a pound on a horse now and again. But this system of betting communication between Mt.'Eden prisoners and bookmakers was so elaborate and extensive that one prisoner, a Frenchman, won hundreds of pounds. Into this "prison" went on one occasion £250 of betting winnings; on another occasion, £100.

After detection of the traffic, a search by officers of the prison revealed £20 m a prisoner ; s cell. Of the persons, figuring m the case, the most notable is Ada May Bleasel, who received one month's imprisonment, and who 'was also fined, for causing letters and a parcel to be delivered to one of the three convicted ex-warders (for conveyance into Mt. Eden Gaol); and for laying tote odds. Mrs. Bleasel is mother-in-law of Mike Flynn, the boxer now m prison for breaking and entering m Auckland, and she used to visit him m Mt. Eden. Her daughter (his wife) annoyed Magistrate Poynton during the court proceedings, and was "removed." Mrs. Bleasel was clearly instrumental m the betting transactions. "Only a pawn m the game" said her lawyer. But the Magistrate said: "This woman is the mainspring." Chief Detective Cummings mentioned that Mrs. Bleasel had been fined twice for receiving stolen property. When served with the summons m the present proceedings, "she said she was not very penitent. and said she would still carry on." Apart from this extraordinary prison-betting conspiracy, the discovering of the communication system showed that letters had passed that indicated contemplated attempts at escape— -letters that might have caused mutiny. .

One letter concerned an attempt to reduce sentence, and the writer promised to approach the Chief Justice and Miss Baughan, and discussed the alternative of escape or awaiting tKe* Prison Board's verdict. On the whole, the postal system at ML Eden seems to be quite a fair rival to the institution run by Mr. Markman. _ i ...-'".■..

Punting heavily by mail, and a correspondence system on a. grand' scale directed m some cases to the escape of prisoners from Mt. Eden gaol, were revealed m a sensational series of charges •at Auckland Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, writes "Truth's" Auckland rep. ( "Mike" Flynn's mother-in-law was the central figure m the plot for punting, which was carried on between a "time" serving Frenchman and outside "books." Three warders were involved m the. carriage of letters to and from the prison. Other prisoners were m. the habit of receiving through this "channel letters from their friends, some passages m which hinted at plans for v escape. * ■ Thip conspiracy — one of the most sensational ever attempted m connection with H.M. prisons m New Zealand — was laid bare before Magistrate Poynton m the Auckland Magistrate's Court on Tuesday afternoon last by Chief Detective Cummings. FOUR ACCUSED. ■■ ■ Ada May Bleasel and "ex- Warders liloyd, Scott and Redler, faced a series of charges under the Prisons Act and the Gaming Act. Ada May was charged that she caused to be delivered to one David Hugh 'Lloyd three letters arid one parcel of tobacco, for/ the purpose of being conveyed to Mt. Eden. She was also ori two informations of laying 'tote odds. David Hugh Lloyd, Edgar H. Scott, and F. W. T. Redler were charged with causing. letters and parcels to be unlawfully conveyed into H.M. prison, Mt. Eden. • Mr., Tong for Mrs. Bleasel, entered a formal plea of not /guilty. The oxwarders each and all pleaded guilty. . The story of what had been tjoing on between those behind prison walls "and those without was told from the witness-box by Chief Detective Cummings, and the narrative can best be told m his own words. He said that m consequence of information received he went /to Mt.. Eden prison. There he interviewed the. then " Warders Lloyd, Scott and Redler, staking possession of three letters addressed "F. Collins 1 , G.P.O. Box 20, Newmarket," as well as a postal packet. Later m the clay Mrs. Bleasel called at the orison for the purpose of seeing her son-in-Jaw, "Mike" Flynn, a former pugilist well known m Australia/who is serving a sentence for breaking and entering. Witness had an interview with the lady m the superintendent's office. The Chief Detective told Mrs. Bleasel that Warder Lloyd had been detected bringing various articles and letters, along with chocolates and tobacco, into the prison, and that it had come to his knowledge that she had given these articles to be delivered to Flynn and to another prisoner, a'- Frenchman named Corvissiano; Mrs. Bleisel admitted that she had given Lloyd a parcel and three letters to take to her friends within. . : EVIDENCE OF "PUNTING." The- -witness then went on to deal with the betting charges against" the j accused woman. He produced three; day cards for the Poverty " Bay Hunt Club, held on August 1, and; the Christ -' ■church Hunt Club meeting on the same / day. The programmes also showed * the first and second horses and the "divvies" paid by the placed horses. Among the exhibits was also a "settling statement," showing very extensive dealings at tote odds. This was m the envelope Mrs. Bleasel admitted sending per favor of -Lloyd to the Frenchman. The settling sheet showed that the "Frenchy" had made numerous investments. For one' day's betting on July 25, his investments ' totalled £190 arid his" winnings Ih were £115 12s. At the Poverty Hk Bay meeting £75 was invested and Eft £8 5s was won. At Gis-borne tm from £152 was put on the horses ■r arid £109 12s was the return. Each bet made was shown m detail on the statement. The mvv vestments ranged from £1 to £12. One bet amounted to £25. The betting sheet was m the usual k form as used by bookies, and the limit was £7 10s "divvy." Witness said he told the accused «he was a bad woman to bet with pri-

soners, and she said that although she did bet for a prisoner she did not hold any money but passed it on and arranged with the prisoner with reference to the "divvies." Ho told her she must have been . aware that such was a breach of the Prisons Aot, and she said she was aware of the fact and was prepared to take the risk. She admitted that the prison authorities had given her every opportunity to see her son-in-law, and that she had visited him frequently, always receiving consideration from the officials. "She complained there was no such thing as British justice m the country — that she had received none it all event, nor had her son-in-law "Mike" Flynn. There was no mistake that betting had been carried on and a double of £250 had been paid. After -hearing the evidence, Mr. Long amended -his \ plea to one of guilty of the offences under the Prisons Act. He submitted on a point of law that to pass" a double chart to another person was not publication within the meaning: of the Act. , The Chief Detective quoted authority to the contrary. . £100 THROUGH ILLICIT MEANS. Wm. Thos. Leggett, Deputy Superintendent, ' Mount Eden Gaol, gave corroborative evidence, having been present at the interview with Mrs. Bleasel. A search of the prison which was ultimately, made resulted m the discovery df £20 m a prisoner's cell. It had come to the knowledge of the authorities that' £100 had been received m prison through illegal channels.. , - '"■ . ' "So far as the offence against the Prisons Act is concerned," said Mr. .Long, "one cannot help thinking that a—big drama has been going on m which' the accused is one of the pawns m the game. ' I submit she has been made use. of by someone higher up. She has been made a go-between, and will have to bear the brunt of the punishment." Counsel went on to state that the accused was a married woman carrying on business at Newmarke.t. The business was her husband's. She had no knowledge of the preparation of the settling sheet, but had simply forwarded it through Box 20, as she had been instructed. She had not received a penny of the money mentioned. She did not know who Collins, the possessor of the box at the G.P.0., was. The accused gave evidence on those lines, and denied having handled any of the money. Cross-examined by the Chief Detective, accused admitted handing the letters and parcels to Lloyd. „. She knew the statements produced referred to betting. • Mr. Cummings: Who was the bookmaker? — No answer. You would rather not say? — No. Ask Mr. Bleasel. He does all the business, not me. But you said you attended to the business? — When he is under the influence of liquor ,1 have to do the ; business. ! How long has this been going on? — I couldn't say. i Have you ever, seen Corvissiano? - — I don't know him. This concluded the evidence. THE CANKER OF BETTING. The S.M\: This just shows how very deeply this canker has penetrated i through into our vitals when bookmakers can carry on business with i prisoners within a gaok > Mr. Cummings: A sum of £100 went m on one occasion and . £250 m another. Mr. Tong: It has not been shown that this woman carried on the business. ■-• , The S.M.: This woman is the mainspring. The Chief Detective explained that on February 23 Box 20, Newmarket, was taken m the name of Eva. M. Collins. The warders had at intervals cleared the box, taking letters' back to the prisoner. So far- as was known Scott had taken m £100, the result ' of. betting transactions by the French- ' man. I When tho three warders were interviewed every one of ..them told

the truth, and had given every assistance to the police. Lloyd had boon a Government servant for 20 years, and hud never been m trouble. He had lost his position, and would require to go elsewhere for his living. Ail had been suspended, and their superannuation would be forfeited. Scott was aN married man, 30 years of age, with a family of eight, which was expected to be added to very soon. He had nine years'. Government service, though he had been only a short time m the Prisons Department. Redler was 26 years of age, was married, had one child, and had one yeai - 's service m the Government employ. Some of the letters sent m were of a very serious nature and liable to cause even mutiny m. gaol. He read passages from two letters m which contemplated attempts at escape were indicated. The S.M.: Yes. I . see where one man had prepared a huge crime when he got out, and' was planning re-en-acting the offence for -which he was Imprisoned m order to involve someone else. The warders, "will •be .fined £5 each, with costs, and ea fortnight m which to pay. ' Mr, Cummings: Mrs. Bleasel hasbeen fined twice £50 for receiving stolen property. On Saturday last, when served with the summons, she

said she was not very penitent, and said she would still carry on. , The S.M.: A fine m her case would be a mere flea bite. She will be sentenced to one month on the first charge, and fined £20 on the other two. Security for appeal was fixed at £20. • AN "INCIDENT." Just then a fashionably dressed young woman walked up to the magisterial rostrum, and, while Mr. : Tong was asking that a fine be imposed, the - woman engaged the S.M. m conversation. ,-i M,r. Poynton moved the intruder away several times, but she refused to go," and at last, m a stern voice, he said: "Officer, .remove this woman, she Was been positively insulting." Whereupon, Mrs. "Mike" Flynn was removed from the courtroom by Detective O'Sullivan. The S.M. refused to impose a fine, stating the offence was a most impudent one. ( , The letters disclosed that the French convict had been dealing m hundreds of pounds all over the country. He profusely expressed his sorrow m one letter to Mrs. Bleasel for having kept her waiting for a settlement, but if he had known ; sooner he "would have asked friends Ford or Lewis for a couple of hundred." He hoped that £140 would even matters up with her "bookie." Other letters were couched m the most "mushy" manner. One from a woman to "Te,d" gave the impression that "Ted's" correspondent was m Australia. She m almost every sentence ' vowed her never flickering love for ; him and her desire to be over beside him "where he was" m order "just to be with the one man she loved." The letter had an enclosure m the shape of a lock of thick black hair, tied neatly with a piece of yellow and blue ribbon. More sinister was the following passage m another letter: Should you be able to call suddenly, just call at our- old address, and they will tell you our whereabouts. I would give the address, but am afraid of accident. I Another lady writer discussed a plan of applying for reconsideration of the sentence passed, and asked the convict to send out the required form of application. The writer promised to approach the Chief Justice, also Mrs. Herbert and Miss Baughan m the matter. The correspondent discussed whether it would be better "to do a get" or to wait for the board's visit m November.

He (after a horrible silence) : "Well, men are fools to marry! That's all!"

She: "Of course they aue, dear. But what are women to do? There's nothing ELSE they can marry."