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Proxy votes trial: Witness felt ‘violated’ at having signature forged
A WITNESS today told the court how her signature was forged on a proxy voting form in the lead up to the 2010 Douglas East by-election.
Gillian Hughes, of Summerhill Road, Douglas, said matters started to come to light after she received a letter from the government thanking her for a proxy voting application she had never made.
‘I was quite shocked. My friend told me to just put it in the bin but I said I was going to phone and find out what it was all about,’ she said.
Mrs Hughes said she telephoned the number on the letter and was later visited by Ray Sloane from Treasury who took a sample of her signature.
‘I was quite upset, quite emotional,’ she told the court. ‘I went to the police. I felt quite violated that someone could do that sort of thing.’
She said she later received a phone call from someone called Kelly Rothwell claiming to be from the Treasury. She said Miss Rothwell, who was actually part of by-election candidate Kevin Woodford’s campaign team, wanted to discuss her proxy voting application.
Nigel Hamilton QC, defending Miss Rothwell, suggested the caller had said she was calling about the Treasury letter, but had not claimed to be from the Treasury, but Mrs Hughes rejected this.
‘I thought: why is someone from the government calling me at 8pm?’ she said.
In court she was shown the proxy voting application and said the signature on it was not hers, nor did she know either of the other two people named on it.
The trial continues of Kerry Louise Rothwell, 26, and Catherine Elizabeth Liggins, 26, both of Summerhill Road, Douglas, Gail Corrin, 40, of Cronk-y-Berry Avenue, Douglas, and Geoffrey Andrew Callister, 51, of Ballakilley Close, Port Erin.
All four are charged with conspiring to secure proxy votes for Mr Woodford, conspiring to steal and conspiring to forge a document.
The case continues.
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Saturday 25 May 2013
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