Supreme Court Social Security Officer Guilty On... (Press, 5 July 1969)

On 5 July 1969, Clifford Jack Fordham, a 45-year-old social security officer from Christchurch, was found guilty by a jury in the Supreme Court on all 27 counts of forgery he faced. The trial lasted one week, with Fordham being accused of unlawfully renewing benefits for two deserted wives whose benefits had been cancelled. He was specifically charged with forging documents to appoint fictitious agents who collected and cashed benefit orders from post offices. The charges included the forgery of 19 warrants, with various amounts forged, as well as eight additional forgery counts associated with forms and authorisations. The presiding judge, Mr Justice Wilson, took two hours to summarise the case before the jury began deliberations at 3.08 p.m. The jury returned with a unanimous verdict of guilty by 7 p.m. During the trial, Crown prosecutor Mr N. W. Williamson argued that the evidence against Fordham was substantial, despite his denials. He dismissed Fordham’s claims that someone else in the Social Security Department was responsible for the forgeries as implausible. Williamson pointed out that only Fordham had the unique combination of knowledge, opportunity, and means to commit these forgeries, being the designated officer for deserted wives’ benefits. He noted particularly that Fordham had the ability to control the issuance of forms and access to relevant beneficiary information. Fordham’s defence attorney, Mr R. S. D. Twyneham, contended that the evidence was not conclusive enough to warrant a conviction, citing numerous discrepancies and “unexplained mysteries” surrounding the case. Twyneham argued that it was not the defence’s obligation to identify the actual forger and suggested that people could easily have accessed Fordham's desk within the department. He urged the jury to consider potential weaknesses within the Social Security Department's system and the unreliability of witness identifications, particularly referencing an instance where a post office clerk did not positively identify Fordham. In addition to Fordham’s case, the court also sentenced Ralph Dalkeith Hansen, a 32-year-old driver, to nine months’ imprisonment following convictions on three charges of sodomy and one of indecent assault against a boy. The sentences were ordered to run concurrently, taking place in the same Supreme Court session. The overall proceedings highlighted serious issues of integrity within the public service and the challenges of verifying identities and actions within bureaucracy. Fordham's sentencing is scheduled for 15 July 1969.

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