UNDER FALSE NAME.

Otago Witness, Issue 3882, 7 August 1928, Page 54

UNDER FALSE NAME.

RONALD GRIGGS REAPPEARS.

OMEO TRAGEDY RECALLED.

SYDNEY, July 25. Memories of the so-called Omeo tragedy have been revived by the discovery that Ronald Griggs, who was acquitted on a charge of having murdered his wife, has since been living in Adelaide under the assumed name of Maxwell, and preaching at the Presbyterian Church at Colonel Light Gardens. He has since gone to Western Australia, where, it is understood, he intends to enter civil life. While in Adelaide he lived with Mr A. R. Stevens, and under his assumed name he was employed by the Presbyterian Mission. Inquiries instituted by the committee of the mission into the credentials presented by Griggs led to his identification. The credentials, which the standing committee of the presbytery were asked to examine, included a university certificate which had caused some doubt in the minds of the committee because it appeared that the name had been erased and altered. The Rev. A. D. Leckie, director of Presbyterian Home Missions in Victoria, revealed how the trick had been discovered. He explained the procedure adopted in admitting candidates to probation for the ministry. When the candidate has received his training, before he applies for admittance as a minister, he is called upon to produce evidence of good character and to furnish evidence of educational training. When he was asked for certificates, Ronald Griggs produced a Melbourne University matriculation certificate in the name' of Graine Maxwell. Following the usual practice, the certificate was sent to the convener of the College Committee for Australia, when it was discovered that apparently there had been a i alteration in the name, one name appearing to have been erased and another substituted. The certificate was taken to the university, and the number revealed that it had been issued to Ronald Griggs. Immediate notice was sent to Adelaide, and the action by the South Australian Church led to the dismissal of Griggs. Griggs first met Mr Stevens at L» Harve, in France, where they were both members of the A.I.F. They were together at Weymouth Camp, England, and, from personal observations of him, Mr Stevens considered that Griggs was a man of character. After their return to Australia they continued a correspondence with more or less regularity. After his acquittal Griggs went to Adelaide at the suggestion of Mr Stevens, who was anxious that Griggs should be given an opportunity to make another start in life.