THE MELBOURNE SWELL MOBSMAN.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 204, 27 August 1879, Page 6

THE MELBOURNE SWELL MOBSMAN.

Tradesmen bave been greatly victimised by _ person who given hims. If out aa Dr Boudel. He eaid he expected hia wife nod family to j .in him shortly, but that he wished to commence practice directly. He thereby induced the landlady lo put n larga brass plate bearing hia name on ihe front door. He then hired _ styli.h carriage and pair, en! liveried servant, and thus prepared he drove round to the leading jeweller., aud selected valuable jewel' lery, ostensibly aa presents for his wife nnd family. In each case ho offered to drive ihe clerk out to Lis residence, taking the jewellery, and promising to give fhe money. The clerks, misled by the door-plate on the large and fashionable residence, and the easy, confidential, affable manner of the swindler, accepted his cheque instead of the casb, all of which, of course, proved valueless. By those means lie obtained altogether about £500 worth of jewellery, some of which was pawned. The detectives succeeded in tracing the major portion of the jewellery obtained fro:n Mr Moses Goldstein's, who was the first to detect the swindle, nnd the clock obtained by the offender from Vrs Spann waa found at the house at St. Kilda in which lie had taken apartments. The property he ohtained from Messrs Wonzel and Enes has also been fo.nd in a pawnbroker's shop. The authorities believe that the swindler, who is evidently thoroughly accomplished in his nefarious profession, has not left Melbourne, and as it has been ascertained that a woman is con .ernad in the (H3posa! of the plunder, there is some ground for believing th.t he will soon be brought to justice. It i. rumored that several jewell.rs beyond (hose who have reported losses 10 tbe police have been victimised, and judging from the consummate ekill with wbich tlie whole affair was planned and carried into execution, it is very probable that the eurmisa is correct. It, is now transpired that it wns only on Toesday Inst that the fellow engaged tbe Apartments at St. Kilda; that he paid 5s on account of 10 guineas per week thit he agreed to pay, and that he immediately affixed his name plate on the exterior of the house. He then appears to have set out upon his plundering expedition, and with the exception of one or two flyin« visits which he p_id during (he day wish persons whom he was swindling, he was of course never seen a^ain,