A STRANGE STORY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 162, 28 March 1918, Page 6

A STRANGE STORY

CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY AFTER TWO YEARS EXTRADITION ORDER REFUSED. In (lio Magistrate's Court yesterdav, before Mr. S. B. M'Carthy, S.li., Brenda -, .Stuart Cross was charged that between January and July, 1916, at Sydney, she t did conspire to defraud Thomas Henry f Mullet or large surus of money. Chief Detective Boddaru appeared foi 3 the police, and Sir John Findlay, witli him Air. D. R. Hoggiird, appeared for the accused, j The Girl's Statement. 5 Detective Sergeant Cos gave evidence 1 ns to the arrest of the accused at "Wild Hills," Alfredton, on March 15. The warrant was read over. She raado and signed a statement, which was as follows: "I, Brenda Stuart Cross, state' , as follows;—I would like to tell you all abouf it. lam 21 years of age now. I was ir a maternity home of the Benevolenl Society's at Sydney with my baby. ] was there under the name of- Brendn ) Stuart. A man named Robert Hcnrj ! Millett engaged me from the home as « i J general help to liis wife. This was in r January or February, 1916. I was there . I about six months, but received no payI I ment in money, only my food and clothes. I was only at the Millett's twe nights when he caine home one night 1 and said that lie had lost in n ' mine. lie seejned so upset, that I be--1 J lioved and! was sorry for. him. From !! that on fov the following threo or fom • i months botli Millett and his wife sai<i • ! they would have to retrench owing tc • '• their loss. - One day he told me thai . i he would have to sell his house, bul . I would not lite to ldse it altogether. »Thoj I then lived at Marlborongh Tioad, Fleming i ! ton. While there Mrs. Millett bough! : ■ me a wedding ring so that any of theii ' j friends that called at the house would [ i not know Hint I was not married. J |- had my child there with me. I wore ' ' the wedding ring, and was known as Mrs, ■ ' Stuart, my second Christian name. On< ! day Mr. Millett told me that ho intendec i to'mortgage his house, as he could no! sell it. T asked him why he could nol sell it. He raid the law would not all'ra him to sell it, n= the Government or the ■ bank had a. hold over the property. Hi . then suggested to me thnf , T tisire s mortgage over his house, ns it could de no harm, and T was still Mr.=. Stuart, and would only need to sign a few -papers which would mean saving their , home foi them, after all they "had done for me. J n-reed as I thought t.K&ro. .was noi harm, Mr Millett told me that I would have t< 1 «o 'to a solicitor's to sign the iiecessarj ; papers. A week or two later Mr. MulM came and looked over the house ol < Millett's, and asked me if I was Mrs. j Stuart. I said Yes. FneversawMr ! Mullet again. A week or two later Mrs. i Milled, lent me a. nice dress, hat, nm: ' bangle to wear when I went to Hit • solicitors: I went to M'Lnughlin anc Murray's, solicitors. Sydney, on Ihree oi four occasions; on the first Mr Eussell one of the heads, road a lot of papers over to me-somcthing about MiUctts mortice Ido not tl'.ink that I signed anything' Hien. On the other occasion? I signed several papers, 'Brenda Stuart, in reference to Millett's mortgage. On I think, the last occasion T was at thf solicitor's, Mr. Millett took me to.an office where there was an old man with a name like Dobbs. This old man ok me to take up, a dry pen and pretend! t. 1 sign my signature winch had alread been written on the .papers that I hac, previously signed at the solicitor's. Mr. Millett told me that the old man was J p That was all fixed up. Later, w 'Lad to leave the. honso and live at thf lack. Mr. Millett told mo that I would lwvo to rent the house, which would be " help to them. An acent came tc i week The nionor for tho rent did noi oome'h.moorthoMilletll'.buttoeome other Person. I received no raonej K& the Milletts or anybodj i Jl"e over the Millett's mortenfre. Shortly afta this I received a letter M frightened me, which stated that I Falsel. ! represented myself as Mrs. Stuart. J drew Mr. Millett's attention 'to it. He , it was a ioke, and laughed. Jus ' or MilWt left her home, and I "lso left Millett's wjth my child.' ! Detective Cox stated that fhe statement i -n-T! made quite voluntarily. Lilian May Armfield, special constable from Svduer produced Hip warrant issuein New South Wales for the arrest of I the accused. j Case for the Defence. Tn openin* the case for fhe defence, bii ! John Say outlined the cirenms tances ■J which had led to the of '" ~«,. When a little over 18 yeam oi a e i. known bn in all that time. nothing was ( w n Hie matter of brinsins n charge S iev When the father brought ?,nVback to New Zeahm and d,scoveifd who her swlncor bod >en nn XiU instituted, and .throughout a whole of the in the lower and higher' Courts nothing transpired which could have shown that the eirl had been. conscious ,of d:shonesty. There was extreme bitterness displayed b> the man who seduced lien the bitterL was so great that he counsel) was entitled to infer that the Criminal Court in Australia had been moved. Iherc was something sinister m the delay of the action. The damages obtained to the action taken by the girl's parents had not been paid, and matters were being Btill further held up by a pr-ieded action in tho Court of Appeal. The man wlio was robbed in Sydney was a moneylnmW and it was strange that the case should be initiated now after so much delay In counsel's opinion tho young woman should have .been called as a witness in an action against the real Perpetraiirs rattier than as the defendant in an action. . , ... Sir John Fimllay then stressed the Mint that it was necessary that it should bo sliown that the prosecution had been brought in good faith. It was possible to prove whether the_wl had had i>nr dishonest intentions. Therei wns 'n* evidence on the point. He contended that no person should bo ordered to be taken out of Now Zealand on a similar warrant unless there were clear grounds for such a course. The accused gave evidence on. Iho lines of her statement ini.de t/> Doteelivc Cox. The Decision. The Magistrate, in deciding the matter, said tho action was brought under the rriminnl procedure for the Stale of New South Wales, but from a bug experience of New Zealand criminal law the .chawo seemed tn him lo be very vasrue indeed. One would at least expect doliulcd sums of moncv to be mentioned in such a chai-e. "Tlio accused was a wm,le countrv «ivl without any ldw ob isino«, and if her story wn< Ir.io she had |,(V-.I dllPnd. AffniH. tl'f e'.n.W WjS sl-nln in (hat no alleinpt had been nnidn in' hrin" it her until s'" , l"id lurned to No,v !!«il»ml. lont after the rrime vn« allee-fl 1" hnve Iren commilted. Ooncltidinir. lheMiteistTntow.l: "IVhil" these warrants are not to be l-Vhrlv disrerardo/l. v«t the Court mnsf tii'ko care ftnr oxfrndilion W'nen«dinfwnro not to bo ««'l. or rnlbor abused for jhe , m rno=p of eithor bnokin? Un or advancing „ civil remedy. T.ooltiny at it fairly, it had not been made out to my satisfaction tbnr tho pwpcution was initial in pnod faith. Tpn accused will be discharged absolutely,"