SPURIOUS COINS

Hokitika Guardian, 26 August 1932, Page 3

SPURIOUS COINS

BIG PLQT ALLEGE?) P* - '■

TRAFFIC FROM CHINA

• Behind th 6 arrest " iri v Sydney last Tuesday of three Chinese, lies. a ponce claim to the discovery of a plot to circulate' counterfeit Australian coins on 1 a large scale. It is alleged . that the barf coins originated in China, andthat they havejbeenii., perfectly modelled that' the /police' li&ve 1 found it,} necessary to call scientists - and other experts to their assistance. .Many of the coin-s had to be assayed before J the banks . could be certfijhpthat they j ■vere spurious. The ,appearance,. ring;! hardness, /and- response to the acid

vst .were the sam > ,as with. , genuine oins, and . all that remained Was to, ribmib the- pieces.- itoya-'fdng chemical piioc-ess in ispecialily prepared laboratioyip**' It' was,;then shown' .that, .the! ■suspected.: coins varied- 3' per ’- from the standard content ;bf '•Long.' ifeiiquiries :,b‘y the digwed. that the coins, which wel-e: mostly'shillings, had . been ---imported from Hong Kong. ’ The pqhce ifwere' faced wifh, the initial .difficulty', that Vustraliah. coins, especially •'<: tho.se of’, lower 'den'omjiiations,.' were ! cheap;'" bn' China, and . that anyone wishing. ~-fo traffic iii .them could make about 8 ipbr c-ert. By-bringing .them -to .Australia., i’p}ic,e. ; ( viewed , (this , . traffic}/,} wifh suspicion} especially when they : learned that on-.one occasion a • mari' , -brdught his luggage,.phi. counterfeit;' coins, were so .widely, distributed that-lone ,tof the detectives erig-Lged in .thA enquiries actually received, one in ~lds pay mvelopc. . ,

..The warning ( of the the , coins was received from the tel]ei. t pf - a,_ city bank who <became. sysjgjcigipa) of a number , qf; . ..sliiilings- tindeyeci! among alarge sum-, banked/ by a?, Chinese. customer. ,The . . coiq, rang, trufc, and passed various . other teets, and several bank officials, jvere ..inc'jned .to, scoff at,,.the. . tel'er. It was however, that the- .doubted' be -sent to Melbourne- for special, Elaborate - chemical 'tests - had -to- ;be ; made before..it could be sa,i.d . with .any degree of ..thatthe coi-jft.' were spurious. ,It, was then, that there "’was a difference of ? per cent, from the : ;silver content of, geii uine coins. , ... , ,

• EvPafs I'-'moyod.v.qluicklyj rafter /-that., Other banks were warned, and- thr.ee: of them reported ■ that they had '/-Tecei.veil coins'" !Bi.mil,ar. to those which . had ‘/been proved spurious. Detectives . wdre "nb once detailed-, to watch, three 'Ch'i.nese; who had paid, large sums into-'the four’ banks poncernei. .4fc .- was; siound .-thafbad ,coins tyere good one®, -'the; ratio-4jbsifSg about ,40 per cent, bad 'abins'; ■" -:ic : ,- On one -occas-'o.nf according to th<" detectives, pno : of the-/Suspects wa«seen to! change . 'two< 810 -notes into, shillings find florins.:; • LaterF -Kg : - visited, another bank, . andvidepOsitdd ,£ isome ,of the good "silver as, -well, coins. The men- w4rei : followed' night? and . day for almost three ■-Weeks,; and. bn* 1 Tjnesday when.4^' l Chinese'' arrived, at a city bank for the' ; 'p\ifpWste'of pay-; ing in £2O in- oilve’-"he''wbis-' 1 intercepted by two detectives - and takeh to’ -polict? beadqu'arlie'rSp 'Tliehb''' -he! wa's' clo-se’y-qtiojstioned. Soon ’ after' detectives -rushed to tho .offices of/an; importing .firm 1 and arrested two 1 morb ? -6hißesO.

, When ithe men appeared .before the Magistrate, it was . stated -by their counsel that the defence would be that the coins were, not spurious.