“DEAL" IN BRICKS

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 536, 13 December 1928, Page 13

“DEAL" IN BRICKS

COMMISSION AGENT FACES EIGHTEEN CHARGES SUM OF £2,000 INVOLVED Eighteen charges of false pretences involving a sum of over £.2,000, were heard against Edward John Samuel, an elderly commission agent, at the Police Court to-day. According to the evidence, Samuel made fairly large brick and timber “deate.” The bricks tie sold at a lower price than he bought them for, but he showed a profit on the deal, simply by not pa>'ing the maker. The charge rea.d to the Court, involving the largest single amount, was that Samuel at Pongakawa, in 1928, obtained credit by fraud to the extent of £661 6s 9d from Richard Henry Phelan. Messrs. F. S. Rickerby and W. H. . Nagle, J.P.’s, were on the Bench. Sergeant Kelly prosecuted and Mr. Leonard appeared for Samuel. CONCERNING BRICKS Charles Thomas Smart, brickmakor. of Taka puna, said that accused called at his yard and asked for a bed-rock price for bricks. A total of 26,f’0u bricks was supplied to carters arranged for by. Samuel, the value of the bricks being £l3O. Accused made it clear that he would pay for the bricks on the 25th of the month following delivery. Witness received no payment, however, and he reported it to the police, getting a warrant issued. William Towers, carrier, of Otahuhu, who collected bricks from the yard, said a« Samuel had not paid him for delivering the first lot of bricks he had refused to deliver the second. A balance of £l9 was still owing to him. “He told me he could give me bricks at -a price cheaper than I could get them in town,” said John R. Simpson, builder. Samuel quoted him bricks at £4 35s a thousand, delivered at Wellington, and was paid £9B by witness for the bricks. Bricks bought from other firms were costing £5 10s in the yard. Asked by witness if he had paid for the bricks, Samuel had said that ho intended to do so as soon as he got some money from home. The timber “deal” of Samuei’s was described by Richard Henr> r Phelan, sawmiller, of Pongakawa. Witness, after negotiations with Samuel and a man named Austin, consigned 5,623 ft. of timber valued at £7l 4s 4d, to Samuel at Newmarket. Edward Irvine Mcliattie, manager of a sawmill company near Taumarunui, also forwarded Samuel consignments of timber to the value of £613. Accused told witness that payment would bo made “on the 20th of the following month,” but he had made no payments whatever. Charles Richard Clark, accountant for tho Rotoiti Timber Company, at Xgongotaha, said that he had sent timber to the value of £2OB 33s to Samuel, but had received not a penny , in payment. ( Proceeding. >