CONFIDENCE TRICK

Southland Times, Issue 20082, 20 January 1927, Page 5

CONFIDENCE TRICK

NEW ZEALANDER LOSES £15,000. A LITHE GAMBLE IN FRANCS. London, January 18. Francis Barclay, otherwise Brearley, charged with conspiracy to rob a New Zealander, J. H. McKay was discharged, the Crown Prosecutor not offering evidence. The Crown Prosecutor announced Mason was pleading guilty to stealing two of McKay’s bank notes, £lOO and £5O respectively. There were strong reasons, for proceeding with these two charges only, though they represented a small proportion of a big fraud. Mason, posing as Monroe, a wealthy Queenslander, met McKay on board the ship, en route from New Zealand to San Francisco in May, 1926. Barclay was also on the ship, and the three soon established a close friendship. The seed was carefully sown for six months. They parted at Los Angeles, but foregathered at Ijondon. Then, after a trip to the Riviera, Mason one day in November accompanied McKay to CofnhiU, where he pointed out a man who the prosecutor regretted was not in custody. He would call him “Mr A.” “A.” was actually a conspirator in the fraud. Mason introduced McKay, saying “A.” had just made a quarter of a million on the Stock Exchange. “A.” invited Mason and McKay to join him in a speculation in francs. The prosecutor said: “It seems ridiculous nonsense, and shows that the gullibility of human nature is infinite, but then and there McKay and Mason signed documents instructing the International Exchange’ to invest £15,000 sterling apiece. Fifteen minutes later “A.” reported they had won £33,000, but could not obtain the money until all three had shown ability to bear an equivalent loss. McKay thereupon drew £15,000 from the bank. “A.” produced what appeared to be £7OOO in notes and Mason similarly £BOOO, which Mason took to show the manager of the mythical exchange. When Mason returned he said he had put the whole profits, including McKays security of £15,000, into a new gamble. Naturally this was the end of the matter. McKay was furious at Mason’s unauthorised action. Mason and “A” promised to put things right and disappeared. Later “A.” by means of telegrams, decoyed McKay to Paris, then to Milan, and tried to entice him to Alexandria, but McKay was ill and gave up the pursuit. He returned to London and informed the police. The notes specified had been cashed. Mason from the dock said “the temptation was too great for me.” Prosecutor said Mason had a bad record. He was a well-known confidence trickster. The Magistrate, in sentencing him to a year’s hard labour, said the limitation of charge may have been due to Mason’s youth, or perhaps it had been assumed he was acting as the agent for a more experienced criminal.—A. and N.Z. Mr J. H. McKay is a well-known Wellington architect. He has been in practice for many years. His firm, Messrs Crichton, McKay and Haughton, have designed many of the largest offices and other buildings in Wellington and have been the architects for many large bank buildings there, and throughout New Zealand. A cablegram from London on January 2 stated: Confidence tricksters at Birmingham robbed a New Zealander of a sum of £15,000. They made a display of wealth and by telling a story of money-mak-ing by dealing in foreign currencies. The New Zealander tentatively invested small sums with them on which he received some profits. He was finally persuaded to embark on a big coup, when his money and the tricksters disappeared together.