MONEY BY FRAUD

Hokitika Guardian, 24 June 1932, Page 6

MONEY BY FRAUD

“ATLANTIC FLIGHT” PROJECT.

(Per Press Association — Copyright.)

CHRISTCHURCH, June 24

A curious case was heard at the Magistrate’s Court this morning when Boyd Leslie Dixon., 24, a salesman, was charged with obtaining £lO from Eileen Jennings by falsely representing he had undertaken to fly from Germany to America.. That he had been guaranteed the use of a Junkers aeroplane and that the full amount of money necessary for the venture had been deposited with his secretary. The accused was convicted and ordered to come up for sentence if called upon. Counsel said Dixon had ,been smitten with a desire to fly- Tne police said he had never been an aviator though he had been aloft. Chief-Detective Carroll sa'tl that accused got to know Miss Jennings in Wellington, and represented hmis u to b e “Lieutenant”- Dixon, aviator, and declared that arrangements had bee 1 made for a flight from Germany t America, for which lie had ah oi th° £5,200 required except £BS. M'sJenninyp had been induced to part wCh £lO.

Dixon was not a aviator, and he had further represented that something in the nature of a company was running the venture, and that he had a private secretary. A report had been piepaied by Dixon which showed chat he had a wonderful imagination.- The report stated that the copywright of the flight story had been .s-old to a new spa pci. Accused was not an aviator, but had apparently hit on a plan .of helping himself along in the hard times. Recently he had been employed, selling magazines. Counsel for the defence said that accused had become fascinated by the doings of a via tons during, and after, the war, and he seemed to have developed a very keen aviation sense. H)e had not received any sympathy at home, and had got in touch with Admiral Byrd, and Sir Douglas Mawson, from whom he had received encouraging tetters. Dixon had begun to study aind had gained a Lieutenant’s ground work certificate. He could not obtain a pilot’s certificate because of lack of money. He had flights in Sydney, and had watched operations at tile- Mascot aerodrome and had been an observer in the air search for the Southern Cloud. Accused had been genuinely keen on aviation, and had even lectured on aeronautics. Counsel added that there was nothing vicious in Dixon’*? make-up. It -was a case of “vaulting ambition that rather overleaped itself.” r uie trouble had been due to a romantic, boyish, imagination., ,