CONSPIRACY TRIAL

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 3, Issue 691, 17 November 1933, Page 5

CONSPIRACY TRIAL

(Press Assn.-

EXTENSIVE SWINDLING SHO.WN IN A BRITISH CASE LIGHT SENTENOES

-By Telegraph — Copyrlght).

London, Nov. la. The trial was concluded to-day qf Martin C. Harman, Herbert H. Pounds, Berkley F. Conigrave and _E. G. Gh'angeat, who aye charged with conspiracy to defraud in connection with the Korean syndicate, styled the Cho-sen Gorporati'on. Mr. Justice MacNaghton, in a five hour isumming up, described as "moonshine" th© suggestiop that there was a contract on April 13, 1931 with ,the dapanese companies to take 75,000 Cho-sen sares. It passed t)0' th'e farcical when Harman, as chairman of the Japanese companies, agreed with himself, as chairman of the British Bank for Foreign Trade for the latter to buy those shares from the Harman group. It was inop erative as a contract. Harman clearly was the principal actor. Poupds and Changeat took little part in the proceedings. He said they were really dummies but a man accepting directorates had no right to be a dummy. The jury found Harman guilty on all counts, and Conigrave guilty on twenty counts of conspiracy and misapplication of funds, but recommend■ed him to leniency as h© had been seriously influenced by Harman. The jury found both Pounds and Changeat not guilty. Harman was sentenced to eighteen months in the second division, and Coigrave was sentenced to six months in the second division. Pounds and Changeat were discharged.