The Sun.
London, England, 1866-05-11 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE _(This Day).

SHOREDITCH COUNTY COURT.
(Before Mr. Dasent.)

EXTRAORDINARY AND DARING FRAUD.-A LEGAL PUZZLE.

COCKERELL V. GARRETT.

This was an action in trover to recover the value of
certain goods in the possession of the defendant, and the
facts of the case disclosed one of the most extraordinary
and daring systems of fraud ever brought to light.
Mr. Coles appeared for the plaintiff, a glass and china
dealer, of Spitalfields ; Mr. Horace Earle, representing de-
fendant, who is an auctioneer, of 195, Hackney-road.
It appeared that a short time ago a person named
Gardner, who was a stranger to the plaintiff, called at the
shop and selected articles to the extent of nearly £lO. He
desired that the goods should be sent to 155, Hackney-
road, with a bill and receipt, and he would pay for them
either by a cheque or in cash. Indeed, he went so far as
to ask plaintiff which he would prefer, a cheque or the
cash, to which plaintiff replied "cash," but if a cheque
was intended it must not be crossed. It was arranged
that the goods should be at 155, Hackney-road, by half-
past three in the afternoon, and plaintiff's man started with
them in a truck. He could not find No. 155, and as he was
looking about him, Gardner came up and said that he was
behind his time. Plaintiff's man replied that he could not
find 155, whereupon Gardner said, "I did not give that
number. I gave 195." The truck was then drawn up to
195, and Gardner walked into the house as if it belonged to
him. He directed the man with the truck to unload the
goods, and asked him for the receipted invoice. While the
man was unloading the goods, Gardner took a small fancy
musical box, and remarking that he was just going to cross
the road in order to put it in the window of a toy-shop
opposite, walked away. After being about a minute in the
toy-shop, he came out, recrossed the road, and suddenly
disappeared, neither the plaintiff nor defendant hearing or
seeing anything of him to this day. The plaintiff's man
waited patiently for some time, and then walked into the
house, and asked for Mr. Gardner. The servant told him
he knew no such person, and subsequently defendant told
the man that he had advanced £3 15s. upon the goods to
Gardner, who had coolly represented himself as a manu-
facturer requiring assistance. When plaintiff heard where
the goods were he applied for them, and upon defendant's
refusal to give them up brought this action.
It was urged on the part of the plaintiff that a person
was entitled to sue the holder of stolen property, even sup-
posing that he had taken no steps to find out the thief ;
but Mr. Earle contended that in this case the property was
not stolen, as there had been an absolute sale to Gardner,
who even now held the bill and receipt.

His Honour said that no doubt Gardner had been morally
guilty of a fraud upon both plaintiff and defendant, for
which one or both would have to pay. Gardner appeared
to be a person who had closely studied how far he could go
with impunity, and he just went to the extreme point and
there stopped. His Honour had no hesitation in saying
that there were some unprincipled men who knew more of
the law governing cases of this kind than any judge in
the land, and tradesmen could not be too careful in their
dealings with strangers. Looking at all the facts of the
case, he thought the loss ought to be divided, neither side
to have any costs.

Mr. Wilson, the registrar, directed that the hearing fee
should be returned, and the order then stood that plaintiff
was to have back his goods upon paying £1 17s. 6d., or
half the amount defendant advanced to the absent Mr.
Gardner.

POLICE INTELLIGENCE.—This Day.

MARLBOROUGH-STREET. •

A BRACE OF SCOUNDRELS.—George Bennett and James
Smith, two well-dressed fellows, were charged before Mr.
Knox with the following disorderly conduct :
Police-constable Wood, 202 C, said that about half-past
one that morning he saw the two prisoners rush out of the
urinal in Vine-street, fighting, and Bennett tried to strike
the other with a stick. He then took them into custody.
Inspector Harrison said he believed Gordon, 33 C,
could throw a little light on the case.
Gordon said the prisoners belonged to a gang of men
who frequented urinals for the purpose of extorting
money from gentlemen. He believed that they had got
some money from a gentleman, and could not agree about
the division of it.

Inspector Harrison said there had been numerous com-
plaints of persons of the prisoners class.
The stick found on Bennett was handed to the magis-
trate, and was found to be loaded at one end.
Mr. Knox said he should require the prisoners to find a
surety of £5O each to keep the peace for three months.