THE DAILY EXPRESS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20333, 15 February 1928, Page 9

THE DAILY EXPRESS

EXPLORER’S LIBEL ACTION. OPENING OF THE DEFENCE. (Frast Association— By Telegraph-Copyright.) LONDON, February 14. (Received Feb. 15, at 1 a.m.) Opening the defence in the MitchellHedgcs libel action, Mr W. A. Jowitt, K.C., said: “ I suggest that Hedges is an imposter and making a claim he cannot substantiate. No doubt he has been at Panama, and has talked with Indians and had certain interesting experiences, but a man who has written up those experiences as Hedges has done is an imposter.” William Shaw, a chartered accountant, of Dublin, one of the attackers, detailed the abortive hold-up on January 6 and the successful attempt on January 14, when Kenneth Taylor was tied up, but neither Hedges nor Edgell was knocked down or hurt in any way. Edgell deliberately made the grass untidy in order to suggest that a scuffle had taken place. The whole thing was a prank to advertise monomarks, the idea being that Hedges’ bag should be discovered in a sensational manner by means of a monomark. Cross-examined, Shaw admitted that after Hedges issued the writ against the Daily Express he (Shaw) signed a statement to Hedges’s solicitor that Hedges and Edgell were in no way privy to the hoax. Shaw added that he was now thoroughly ashamed of having signed the statement.—A. and N.Z. Cable. The explorer, Mr F. A. MitchollHcdges is claiming damages from the Daily Express for libel, allegedly contained in a report to the effect that bis hold-up of January 14, 1927, was a hoax and a publicity enterprise.