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THE HONG KONG DAILY PRESS, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd, 1928.
THE QUARTER MILLION DOLLARS
„FORGERY TRIAL.
CHANGES IN TREASURY. ROUTINE AFTER, FRAUD ?
MR-BLACK-UNDERGOES--1}-HOERS CROSS, EXAMINATION.
UNPERTURBED BY HUGE LOSS-TIFFIN BEFORE,
INVESTIGATION.""
THE GREAT TRUST PLACED ON A
CHINESE CLERK.
There was again a large crowd of interested spectators at the Supreme Court yesterday when the trial of Carvalho Yeo, who is alleged to have defrauded the Government of over 260,000, by means of three forged cheques, was resumed bélore Mr. Justice P. Jacks (Puisne Judge). In the afternoon, the doors on both sides of the Court room were five deep with spectators who could not get sitting accommodation.
.
Carvalho Yeo, on whom so much interest is centred again. followed the proceedings with a composure that is rarely seen in a man charged with such a grave offence. He listened to the cross-examination of Mr. Thomas Black, accenatant of the Treasury, with keen interest and smiled when Mr. Jenkin elicited from the witness facts which had not been given in evidence.
Mr. Black was subjected to a severe cross-examination by Mr. F. C. Jenkin which lasted two and half hours, and when the Court rose at 4 p.m., Counsel for the defence had not finished.
U
REVELATIONS UNDER CROSS-EXAMINATION.
Cross-examination revealed that since the fraud on the Treasury. was discovered there had been some changes made in the routine of that Department. It was als brought to light that great trust was placed upon a Chinese clerk named Tsang On Wing. This man although only a third grade clerk was entrusted with the job of ordering new cheque books. He had to sign for them and to send them to Victoria Gaol for the Treasury serial num. bers and other additions to be printed on them. He was also empowered to write whenever he chose to the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation for the return of the Bank Pass Book, and on receipt of the Pass Book, he was the person who had to check up the entries. M. Black would not see the Pass Book unless Tsang On Wing found anything to query. The same olerk had a key to the safe where the cheque books were kept.
DISCOVERY OF THE FRAUD.
The discovery of the fraud was made on January 19th, 1928 when the Fass Book was returned from the Bank Tsang On Wing on finding out that something was very much amiss reported the matter to Mr. Black. It was the same Chinese clerk who discovered that thirty choques had been extracted from each of the cheque books contaizing six hundred cheques.
On being told that the Pass Book contained three entries which did not agree with the Treasury's Cash Book, Mr. Black admitted that beyond writing to the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, he took no steps in the matter. He went home for his. tifin, and when he returned to his office in the afternoon, he called on the Bank with a clerk... It was there that he first saw the three alleged forged cheques. He also admitted that he did not think it was necessary to inform the Hon. Mr. Mcl. Messer, Colonial Treasurer, of what Tsang On Wing had told him,
zi
Mr. Black further stated that at the Bank when he first saw the three alleged forged cheques, he knew they were forgeries at the first glance. He, however, admitted that if the bodies of the cheques were covered up and only his signatures had been visible to him, he would have taken them for his own.
WHAT THEY DO WITH RUBBISH IN TREASURY?
悲
Althoughbe saw that the writing on the bodies of the forged cheques resembled that of the clerk Tsang On Wing, he did not suspect him. The reason why his. suspicions were not aroused, Mr. Black said, was because he remembered distinctly that he did not sign those three cheques in question.
In this connection, it may be of interest to mention, that Thang was subsequently under suspicion and placed in custody, He was, however released and reinstated in his job after he had proved bis innocence to the satisfaction of the authorities.
זי
cheques each year, and to meet can- tingencies, a reserve cheque book was always kept at the office. This | reserve book was kept in à safe in the general office. There were two keys to the sale, one of which was kept by the Head Revende Clerk and the other by Tsang On Wing. During office hours the sale was always kept opened, and the cheque book in current use was al- ways on the desk of Trang: On Wing. Other books were also kept in the safe and accused got access. to the safe through those books.
Yeo first joined the service in September 1996 and left on January 8th, this year, His salary was $1,000 per samum, and when he left, he forfeited 25 days salary because- he gave no notice. His excuse was that he had had a quarrel with an- other employee.
Mr. Sheldon: Have you any re marks to make about the amounts on these forgeries, taking into con- sideration that they are made out to outside people, that is non-de- partmental people -They are all for exceptionally large amounts.
Mr. Sheldon: They are all for over $75,000 1-Yes.....
To whom are such large paymenta made in the course of Treasury work -Amounts like that would usually be made to contractors un- dertaking large public works.
"I examined all cheques, drawn in 1927, and found there were only nina cheques drawn. for 850,000 and over," added Mr. Black. A copy of the specification of each contract let to outside contractors was kept in the Treasury. Witness could al- ways get a contract if he wanted to refer to it.
.
No Laxity In The Office.
Asked to describe the working procedure of the office, witnesa gave 8 detailed account from the first stage af how a bill was made up at the P.W.D. up to the time the eheque wan paid out at the Treasury.
A contractor would first of all send in his bill to the engineer in charge of that particular work. The latter would examine every detail, and if found correct, would initial it and pass it along to the P.W.D. accounts office. This de- partment would once again check the items and a roucher would be made out The bill and voucher "would then go before the Director, of the P.W.D., who would sign the certificate on the voucher saying that the work was dona and rates were correct. There, would then bo sent to the Treasury where they would be received by the registry clerk. After registering the receip of the bill, voucher, and certificate, he would pass them along to the examining clerk. The latter would check up the rates in the schedule with the contract, and see that the money was being drawn against its proper apportionment
the in catimates. Each item would then be ticked off and initialled, if found correct..
Cheques Left On A Table. From the examining clerk, the documents would then be passed to Tsang On Wing, the cash book ciek. He would write up the en- tries in the Cash Books. He would also stamp the voucher with a date stam 'and 'would give it the Treasury's serial and voucher's numbers. He would also enter the vouchet number in the voucher re- gister and then make out a cheque, a" slip being attached to the voucher. These would be passed to the abstract clerk, who would enter particulars of payments against each vote. The cheques and vou- chers would then be placed on a small table just at the entrance to Mr. Messer's room. From there the messenger would take them into Mr. Messer for signature. The cheques and vouchers would then be taken from Mr. Messer's room to witness. Mr. Black said that he would ex- amine the documents carefully. Ee would even scrutinise the bill to ace if it were certified by the ch gineer concerned, and in cases of big payments he would even ac- quaint himself with the works con- cerned. If everything was found correct, he would pass them along to the registry clerk, who would in turn send them to the No. 1 shroff. The latter would make his entries in Chinese and then notify a junior clerk to send out advices to the contractors concerned that cheques were waiting for them in the
Vigilance Redoubled. Mr. Sheldon: The end of the year
Do you relax your scrutiny at genuine cheques, no letter whatecall at that time -Not for s
moment.. ever appeared.
Another point of interest was brought out under cross-examina tion. This referred to finding the covers of the cheque books which had once contained the missing cheques. It was stated that the two cheque books had been used in December. The procedure was to throw away covers keeping, of course, the counterfoils of the cheques. The covers were, however, found a month after in the Treasury Department messenger's room. That was after the fraud had been discovered. In explaining this point, Mr. Black said that waste-paper and other rubbish were never thrown away in a hurry at the Treasury. He personally inspected the messenger's room and there he saw a beap of rubbish. It might be a month of six months before the messenger would find the energy' to throw away the rubbish.
The case is expected to last a fortnight.
Mr. Eldon Potter, K.O. and Mr..| The Government had dot drawn H. fi. Sheldon are appearing, for those three cheques, and had never the Crown and Mr. F. C. Jenkin, awed those amounts to any of the instructed by Messra. Ruas & Co, three payees mentioned on the is for the defence."
cheques. When the case was resumed yet. Sheldon Is there any varia-Treasury. terday morning, Mr. C. G. Perdue, tion in stamp or printing on these who is going away
leave three cheques:Yes, these three On within the next two days, gave evi- | cheques" bear the letter “A” “over dence of the identification parade the Treasury serial number on the is your busy time, is it not? Tea. held on September 22nd. He said top left hand corner. In that the accused was paraded with ten men, all dressed in European clothing, and out of nine witnesses called to identify the accused, seven succeeded in picking him out. One said he could not identify the accused and another picked out a
wrong man
MR. THOMAS BLACK'S EVIDENCE.
the
Witness then went on to detail how cheques were obtained from the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank. As soon as they were received, they would be seat to the Victoria Gaol for the serial number to be put gn. Also the word "bearer" would be added. The terminal figures to complete the year would also be inserted. It was usual to obtain cheques" in a book of six hundred.
There are at that time, a very large volume of the cheques coming in for signatura?—Yes, more than usual.
volume of cheques, is there a dif During the influx of this large renee made in the procedure which you have described-Yes.
'64
There was, however, no justifica tion for the suggestion that at the end of the year, the scrutiny would Mr. Thomas Black, accountant
The Eventful January 18th
relax. If anything," said Mr. to the Treasury, was the next wit
Black, my scrutiny would be ness. He said that he joined the
Witness said that he first saw doubled." Government service on February Bank on January 18th. It was the that?
the three forged cheques at the Mr. Sheldon And the reason for 17th, 1928. He was in charge of the expenditures account. Chequel day on which a report was made Witness: We are always watching drawn on the Government's se to him that thirty cheques from to see that no big vouchers are sent. counts with the Hong Kong and each of the cheque books had been in at the last moment. We have to Shanghai Bank had to bear Mr. extracted. Two of the forged che-watch that because we are never Menter's and his own signatures. ques in question were taken from sure whether we shall have suficient Looking at the three nileged forget-the-booke-issued in December
fands at the Bank to meet econ He remembered that the Treasury stant rush of payments. There is cheques, witness said that they pur- ported to hear the agnatures of aeror insued & cheque brown combatrairie danger of both himself and Mr. Messer. He on the missing forms. The Trea- being expended. had not signed those cheques." sury used between. 9,000 to 10,000
(Continued on page
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