A SELF TAUGHT GOLDSMITH CONNED THOUSANDS OF POUNDS

A SELF TAUGHT GOLDSMITH CONNED THOUSANDS OF POUNDS OUT OF TOP

AUCTIONEERS AND ANTIQUE DEALERS BY FAKING SEVENTEENTH CENTURY SILVER

CUTLERY.

A COUNTERFEIT SILVER SPOON AND FORK DESCRIBED BY SOTHEBY’S AS

‘WONDERFUL PIECES’ WERE VALUED AT #20,000-#30,000.

WHEN THEY WENT ON SALE AUCTIONEERS SPINK AND SON BID #48,000

FOR THEM ON BEHALF OF AN OVERSEAS BUYER.

BUT THE CUTLERY WAS NOT THE WORK OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY

GOLDSMITH WILLIAM MATTHEWS.

INSTEAD IT HAD BEEN MADE A FEW MONTHS

EARLIER IN A BETHNAL GREEN WORK SHOP BY 38 YEAR OLD PETER

ASHLEY-RUSSELL.

AND THE FORGERY WAS ONLY DISCOVERED WHEN THE AMERICAN BUYER

CALLED IN EXPERTS FROM LONDON’S GOLDSMITHS’ HALL FOR A LAST MINUTE

CHECK.

POLICE WERE ALERTED AND AT FIRST ASHLEY-RUSSELL, OF VICAR’S

CLOSE, HACKNEY, DENIED EVERYTHING.

BUT HE LATER SHOWED POLICE A SECRET PANEL IN HIS WORKSHOP DOOR

CONTAINING COUNTERFEIT CUTLERY AND HALL MARKS OF FAMOUS MAKERS,

KNIGHTSBRIDGE CROWN COURT HEARD.

MR DAVID WATERS, PROSECUTING, TOLD THE COURT: ‘HE ADMITTED THAT

HE MADE THEM BY BUYING GOLD COINS AND MELTING THEM DOWN.

‘HE MADE THE PUNCHES FOR THE HALL MARKS, WHICH WERE COPIED FROM

GENUINE PIECES OF THE PERIOD.

EVENTUALLY HE SHOWED THE POLICE THE

EQUIPMENT IN THE SECRET PANEL.

‘

BUT BEFORE THAT HAPPENED, RUSSELL HAD COUNTERFEITED CUTLERY

SEVEN TIMES, AND ON NINE OCCASIONS HAD OBTAINED A TOTAL OF ABOUT

#15,000 BY DECEPTION.

THE #48,000 FOR THE FAKE MATTHEWS SPOON AND

FORK WAS NEVER HANDED OVER.

ANOTHER COLLECTOR WITH 23 YEARS EXPERIENCE BOUGHT A FAKE

CHARLES 1 APOSTLE SPOON FOR #600 AFTER AUCTIONEERS PHILLIP’S HAD

AUTHENTICATED IT, SAID MR WATERS.

THEY LATER BECAME SUSPICIOUS OF ANOTHER SPOON AND ‘A CLOUD OF

SUSPICION BEGAN TO DESCEND ON RUSSELL’, COUNSEL ADDED.

ONE COUNTERFEIT SEVENTEENTH CENTURY GOLD SPOON, PURPORTING TO

BE THE WORK OF THOMAS ALLEN, WAS IN FACT MADE BY RUSSEL IN 1981, THE

COURT WAS TOLD.

IT WAS SOLD TO AN ANTIQUE DEALER IN THE PORTOBELLO

ROAD FOR #7,750.

‘THE DEALER LATER RESOLD IT FOR #18,750 – WITHOUT ANYBODY

REALISING THAT IT WAS A FORGERY,’ MR WATERS SAID.

‘MR RUSSELL HAD NEVER HAD ANY FORMAL TRAINING AS A SMITH.

HE

TAUGHT HIMSELF AND FROM 1978 HE WORKED AS A SELF EMPLOYED

SILVERSMITH.

‘

RUSSELL HAD BEEN A BARMAN, LORRY DRIVER, CLEANER AND CHIEF, AND

NOW WORKED AS A PRINTER AT RUPERT MURDOCH’S WAPPING PLANT, EARNING

#15,000 A YEAR, THE COURT HEARD

HE TOLD POLICE HOW HE FAKED HIS GOLD AND SILVER PIECES.

‘I

MELTED THE METAL INTO INGOTS, THEN MADE THE CUTLERY USING A HAMMER

AND FILE AND, FOR FORKS, A SAW.

‘THE HALLMARKS WERE ADDED AT THAT STAGE, THEN THE PIECES WERE

MADE TO LOOK OLD.

‘I POLISHED THE SURFACE WITH A ROUGH SUBSTANCE.

THERE ARE

HUNDREDS OF THINGS YOU CAN TRY TO SIMULATE THE EFFECT OF SEVERAL

HUNDRED YEARS OF CLEANING.

‘

AND HE ADDED: ‘I ONLY MADE #15,000 FROM THREE YEARS’ WORK – IT

WAS JUST SUPPLEMENTING MY INCOME.

‘

RUSSELL PLEADED GUILTY TO SIX COUNTS OF FALSE HALL MARKING AND

OF OBTAINING MONEY BY DECEPTION.

ANOTHER COUNT OF FALSE HALLMARKING

WAS ORDERED TO LIE ON THE FILE AFTER RUSSELL PLEADED NOT GUILTY.

ELEVEN OTHER OFFENCES WERE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION, AND THE

COURT HEARD THAT RUSSELL HAD PREVIOUS CONVICTIONS FOR SHOP LIFTING

AND FOR A CHEQUE FRAUD.

HE HAD COPIED THE WORK OF FIVE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY GOLD- AND

SILVERSMITHS – STEPHEN VENABLES, THOMAS ALLEN, WILLIAM MATTHEWS, JOHN

SMITH AND JOHN SHEPHERD – TO PASS OFF AS THE REAL THING.

MR JOHN HILTON, DEFENDING, TOLD THE COURT: ‘HE HAD A BONA FIDI

BUSINESS RUNNING A STALL IN THE PORTOBELLO ROAD.

HE HAS – AFTER SOME

INITIAL PREVARICATION – PLEADED GUILTY AND CO-OPERATED WITH THE

POLICE.

‘HE IS MARRIED WITH TWO CHILDREN AND HAS DEBTS WHICH HE IS

TRYING TO PAY OFF.

‘

RUSSELL WAS A SECRETIVE MAN WHO KEPT HIS WIFE IN THE DARK AND

CONFIDED ONLY IN HIS DIARY, MR HILTON ADDED.

‘HE WAS WORRIED AND DEPRESSED ABOUT WHAT HE WAS DOING – AT

LEAST HE WAS HONEST WITH THE DIARY,’ COUNSEL SAID.

BUT MR HILTON ADDED: ‘THE AUTHORITY OF EXPERTS AND THE

REPUTATION OF SALE ROOMS IS CALLED INTO QUESTION.

‘

JAILING RUSSELL FOR 21 MONTHS CONCURRENTLY ON EACH COUNT, WITH

HALF THE SENTENCE SUSPENDED, JUDGE SIR JONATHAN CLARKE SAID: ‘THIS

BUSINESS REMAINS SERIOUS BECAUSE OF THE KNOCK-ON EFFECT ON SUBSEQUENT

PURCHASERS OF THE FORGERIES BEFORE THE FORGED ITEMS ARE DISCOVERED.

‘

OUTSIDE THE COURT RUSSELL’S TEARFUL WIFE, ROSEMARY, SAID: ‘HE

SHOULD HAVE MADE THINGS UNDER HIS OWN NAME – HIS WORK IS

BRILLIANT.

BUT HE SAID YOU CAN’T MAKE MONEY ON NEW PIECES.

SHE ADDED: ‘I HAD NO IDEA HE WAS COUNTERFEITING.

THE FIRST I

KNEW ABOUT IT WAS WHEN THE POLICE KNOCKED ON THE DOOR.

‘I BELIEVE THIS IS THE FIRST CASE FOR A HUNDRED YEARS – AND THE

LAST PERSON TO BE CAUGHT WAS HANGED.

HE COULD HAVE PAID HIS DEBTS IF

HE HAD NOT BEEN SENT TO PRISON.

I’M STICKING BY HIM.

‘

A POLICEMAN IN THE CASE SAID AFTERWARDS: ‘NOT ALL THE FAKE

PIECES HAVE BEEN TRACED.

THERE ARE COLLECTORS IN AMERICA AND ITALY

SITTING ON PIECES THEY THINK ARE WORTH A FORTUNE.

AND THEY’RE NOT.

‘

ENDS