HUGE FRAUDS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 371, 23 April 1910, Page 10

HUGE FRAUDS.

-i.-.vLiJl DISCLOSURES, i'ii ANXUM MAN >!•■.%s. Following up the suicide of i-'cbnuiij i."), at uu- uoiijorn i»aius, .uuiklun, oi .Ur. George j iaakun, a Suuimunpion builder aim speculator, has come uic uiaeio.siire oi an amazing series ui nanus, the uouula as yet are sparse, but it is expected that it will eveiuuauy Lie luund thaL i'lankan has swindled ouiuuamptou a.nd district to sumeUimg like i2ut),t)Uo.

in recent years Franklin had operat-

Ed largely on tne local property jimiKet. In soutnampton, Eaatieign, .Portsmouth and otiier places he bought land

and built houses, 'ineu he 'iVouid outain lirst mortgages on liie ' buildings with several persons, ail but the lirst being, of course, ou xorged ueeda. Un one uatch of property he secured no less than nine lirst mortgages. His operations were widespread, and scores Ui iamilies are ruined.

Up to three or lour years ago Franklin was managing clerk for a prominent firm of Southampton solicitors. When his father, a bunder and contractor of Portsmouth, died, lie took on tiie linanciai part of the business, leaving' the practical side to his brother William. It was while he was engaged in this business that extensive series of frauds now discovered were committed.

Success crowned his early efforts, and soon he was living in style with his wife and family at Ports wood, a pleasant suburb of Southampton. He entereu public life, and no one was better known or more generally liked in Southampton than George Franklin. As chairman of the South Stoneham Rural District Council he was a Justice of the Peace, and, to quote the panegyric of a friend, "a most humane man.'' An earnest cuurchman, his voice was to be heard in the well-ordered choir of St. Deny's Church, and, altogether, he was the model of what a prosperous, good-natured citizen should be. And all this time he was defrauding (people in every direction. He Isold house to unfortunate folk whose small savings all went into his pockets —and then they found that the freehold they had purchased was not freehold ae all. He forged leases, and he 'ouilt phantom mansions on imaginary land. In one case he -purchased a large plot of building land at Abden Park, Portswood. This" was laid out, and eventu* i ally houses built upon it. Almost before they were finished Franklin obtained first mortgages on the houses. On these Franklin regularly paid five per cent. At the same time he took out other first mortgages on the same properties, forging the deeds, it is alleged. This went on until in several cases nine "first mortgages" were in existence on the same building. Another time he borrowed £SOO on a piece of land, and then built two houses on it, and which he sold as freehold to two .persons. YOUNG COUPLE'S RUINED HOPES. One man who lias been defrauded altogether of £7OOO advanced £I2OO on supposed first mortgages on certain houses in Eastleigh. He has now learnt that five other men claim to have lent money on fiTst mortgages on the same iDroperty. He also advanced. £3OO each on first mortgages on 14 plots m Portswood, with the same result. One prominent hotel proprietor in the town became suspicious of the safety ol £4OOO he had invested 'with Franklin. He called upon him and bluntly voiced his suspicions. "If you doubt my word, said Franklin, meet me here to-morrow with your own solicitor, and I will produce the deeds to satisfy you. me meeting took place. The deeds were produced —all forgeries—and on the strength of them the publican parted with altogether £3OOO. To-day he is £7OOO the poorer. An employee of the Southampton Docks, who had £BOO saved up, threw up his berth—an excellent one-and handed the money over to Franklin on the promise that it would be safely invested in public house property.- There is not one penny left. The cruellest case is that of a youn B man and his fiancee, who, with upwards of £SOO to start them in life, bought a. non-existent house from Franklin. They are now in the depths of despair. The final crash was indirectly brought about by a builder, who had been extensively employed by Franklin Tradesmen who had been supplying the builder with materials began to press tor payment. The money for these accounts had already been handed over to Franklin The builder thereupon issued a writ, and Franklin, in desperation, went to a friend, and said he must have £IOO to tide over the week's wages. "Very well," said the friend, 1" buy £IOO worth of bricks from you—only you must secure favorable terms as quid pro quo!'' Agreed," said Franklin, and the cheque was immediately handed over. Franklin lo*t no time m cashing it. Meanwhile his friend sent the carts up to the brickfield, only to find that what bricks were there had already been sold to somebody else, and paid foi. u Franklin had come to the end of his resources. Harassed on all sides bj creditors, he, to the surprise of everyone, endeavored to borrow money to pay interest on the loans. He was_ unable to do so, and tenants of houses m Jlay field road, Portswood, had notices iioin several .parties that the rent was to he paid to no one but the writers. The* latter were the various mortgagees Inquiries were made of solicitors, and fust one person appeared with bogus deeds, tlien another, and yet another. Finally, Franklin said that his only chance, of tidinir over the difficulties lav with » a friend" in London He caught the Lon.'on express, and the next that heard of him was his suicide. Ihc onlv lew" he l.'ft was a scrap of -papei. j on 'which he had scrawled, "My brain is cracked. and I am mad. T>uiy mi m London." ~ , Then the lawyers of the town call; id a mectin". Nearly everyone present held securities on behalf of clients to which Franklin had been a party. A committee of investigation was appointed. | The shock was felt with cruel severity j in Southampton.