Douglas Given Two Years for Extortion

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 735, 7 August 1929, Page 1

Douglas Given Two Years for Extortion

HARD LABOUR TERM JUDGE’S SCATHING COMMENT “A blackmailer or a writer of anonymous letters may be classed among the most contemptible and cowardly of human beings. Your offence was not blackmail, but it was very close to it.” STANDING in the dock at the Supreme Court this morning. Harry Cooper Douglas listened to this stinging comment by Mr. Justice Herdman, who sentenced him to two years’ hard labour for demanding money by menaces. Pleading for Douglas, Mr. Noble described tbe offence as most unusual in this country. Douglas, hp said, had never any possible chance of getting anj’ money from tbe suburban grocer, whom he bad spoken to on the phone, as the victim never intended to pay. The prisoner still persisted that there was a man known as “Jock,” from whom Douglas asserted he tried to obtain the letters to surrender to the grocer, thereby doing a good turn. Admitting that Douglas had been previously convicted, Mr. Noble said ac cused claimed that he had abandoned drinking since his release eight years ago, had gone straight and seen his boy through college, and had been a good father to his family. It was so far-fetched and stupid to think that a man of intelligence would commit such an act. In view of the fact that accused had done no harm, and had not even perturbed the threatened man, counsel appealed for leniency. After perusing a statement made by Douglas, his Honour remarked: “It doesn’t matter to me whether there was such a man as Jock or not. You were a party to attempting to extort money by making use of letters you were supposed to have. “One could imagine the state of mind of the man, when you conveyed to him that his wife had been implicated in some scandalous affair,” proceeded his Honour. “Some men would not have been courageous enough to let the public know what was happening, but, fortunately,” said his Honour, “the man had the courage to face publicity. “I san think of no baser means than those you employed against these people,” the judge said. He remarked that Douglas had been previously con-, victed of theft in Auckland, and receiving in Invercargill, though he appeared to have gone straight since his last release.