CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15824, 24 July 1913, Page 8

CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD

TWO MEN COMMITTED FOR TRIAL. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. LONDON, July 22. Francis Shackleton and Thomas Garlick, charged with conspiring to defraud Lord Itonald Gower of £40,000, have been committed for trial. The evidence in the charges against F. R. Shaokleton, formerly Dublin Herald, of converting to his own use £1000 entrusted to him for investment by Miss Mary JosephiAe Brown, of Tavistock, ajid £5000 hajided to him by Lord Ronald Sutherland Gower, was completed, on February 13. I'ho defendant reserved his defence, and ,Mr Curtis Bennett formally postponed committing him for trial With Thomas John Garlick, a.n -accountant, Shackleton was also charged with conspiracy to defraud Miss Brown, Mr Frank hird, and Lord Ronald Gower of large sums of money between January 1, 1907, and July 21, £1910. In regard to Lord Ronald's £5000 the prosecution alleged that Shackleton gave him shares in the City of Montevideo Public Works Corporation, Ltd., which he must have known wero worthless. A wines from the Official Receiver's Department stated that the Montevideo Works Corporation was wound up in July, 1911. the statement of affairs showing a total estimated deficiency of £943,386. In answer to Mr Schwabe, oounsel for Sihackleton, the witness said that the papers on the file showed that Lord Grimtborpe was a creditor for £31,459, money advanced to the corporation.

Outlining the consDiracy chars®, Mr K. D. Muir, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said that the charges were that tho two defendants conspired together to defraud Lord Ronald Gower of £40,000, Mr Hird of £6000, and Miss Brown of £12,000,Lord Ronald was an elderly gentlema!n whp was now in bad health. In 1898 he adopted Mr Hird as his son,'Mr Hird at that' time being a foreign correspondent to tho Morning Post. In 1899 Lord Ronald had a very bad accident, in which he injured his head. He was never a man who krfew anything about business affairs, and those affairs were managed for him by Mr Caldewell, Mr Hird managing his domestic affairs for him. At ono time he had a considerable fortune — something exceeding £60,000 —but he had lost all his money through entrusting the management of his affaire to the defendants. Mr Caldewell died'in November, 1907, and Shackleton, knowing that Lord Ronald was wholly incapaile of managing his money matters, represented himself as being a person versed in the management of financial affairs and persuaded Lord Ronald to plfce all his money matters in his hands. Lord Ronald trusted Shackleton implicitly, and placed the management of his affairs unreservedly in his hands. At Shackleton's suggestion ho gavo a power of attorney to the defendant Garlick, who was an accountant practising in tho city and mas represented by Shackleton as being a very capable and trustworthy man. In December, 1907, some Highland Railway stock to the value of nearly £50,000, which- was held by Lord Ronald, was pledged by Garlick with a firm of stockbrokersnamed M*Anally and Inglis for £40,000. That amount and further additional sums remained pledged for some time • and wero ultimately sold for £46,000 odd. All that Lprd Ronald got for that sum were two- book entries placing in his name 40,000 £1 shares in the International Finance and Development Corporation (Ltd.). He was paid dividends from time to time upon the footing that he owned such shares, but so far as the books showed no such dividends were ever earned.

In May, 1907, while Shackleton was staying at Haromerfield, he told Mr Hird that Lord Ronald had sold out some ; £15,000 nominal of Consols with a view to making provision for Mr Hird in Lord Ronald's lifetime. Shackleton represented to Mr Hird that International shares could not be obtained except through his influence; that the company paid 7 per cent, and was a most flourishing .concern, and that he was putting all his own money into it. In August, 1907, Garlick was given a power of attorney for Mr Hird and the control of his investments passed into the hands of Shackleton and Garlick. By September 23, 1907, Garlick Lad received for investment on Mr Hird's behalf £12,500,. and of that sum £6000 was stated to have been invested in International shares. The certificates were sent at .Shackleton's suggestion to Mr Hird's bank, and Mr Hird did not see theiii until 1911, when ho discovered that only £3000 and not £6000 had been invested in the company.

Miss Brown met Shaekleton for the first time in October. 1906, at Lord Ronald's house, and in 1907 Shaekleton visited her at Tavistock. He asked her how her money was invested, and she toid him. As a result of what Shaekleton said she became nervous about her investments, and Shaekleton offered to help her. She afterwards wrote out a oheque for £3500, and instructed her bankers to sell sufficient stock of here to meet the cheque. The cheque was made payable to Garlick and wa6 cashed by him. On October 4, 1907, she executed a power of attorney to Garlick, and then again the control of Miss Brown's financial affairs passed into the hands of the two defendants. At a subsequent date Shaekleton told Miss Brown that her shares had realised £12,000, and that he had invested £6000 in Internationals and £6000 in the Celtic Company. It would be shown that Miss Brown never was a holder of any 6hares in the Celtic Company, but nevertheless sums of money were sent to her from time to time by Garlick purporting to be dividends on the 6000 shares and another 1000 shares which the defendant wa9 supposed to have purchased for her at another time. Miss Brown formerly had a comfortable income, but she was now reduced to penury. Some small scraps of the remainder of her securities had been invested to produce her an annunity of £100, and her total income, including that annunity, was now less than £170 a year. „ Mr_Jluir said that other charges besides conspiracy to defraud were necessarily involved in the case, and when the depositions were complete a selection would have to be made of the charges upon which the magistrate would be asked to commit the defendants for trial. Among those chargcs would be fraudulent conversion, misappropriation of jnoneys by the pereon holding a power of attorney, and larceny by directors and officers of public companies.

Lord Ronald Gower was. subsequently called as a witness. In regard to the £5000 case ho said: I trusted Shaekleton. I knew lie was doing something for me. I knew nothing whatever about business matters. He seemed to know a great deal about business affaire, and I allowed him a free hand, unfortunately. .

Lord Ronald was shown a pile of letters and cheques, and said that thoy were all in his handwriting, but there was one signature he was not quite sure about. " I should not be surprised to know it was some of Shacklcton's accomplishments,'' ho added. Mr Muir: You had better not say anything of that kind, Lord Ronald.

Lord Ronald Gower tlion gave evidence upon the summons against both defendants. He said that he had no recollection now of having signed the power of attorney produced. It appeared to bear his signature, and the body of it was, lie believed, in Shackleton's writing. Ho did not know that his Highland Railway stock bad been pledged for £40,000 and that shares had been allotted to him in the International Corporation.

Cro?s-examined by Mr Schwabe, Lord Ronald said that his income did not suddenly increase after his business affairs were taken over by Garlick. Ho did not know that he had lent £12,000 for the promotion of Maxim's restaurant, one of the companies promoted by the International Corporation, and he had no recollection of any arrangement that he was to receive a shilling on every pound so advanced.