John Thomson (fraudster)
Encyclopedia
John Thomson was warehousekeeper to the Charitable Corporation
, but participated in a fraudulent scheme that deproved it of the bulk of its assets.
, London
on 15 November 1725, he was appointed warehouse keeper and Mr Clarke was appointed surveyor. Six months later, Clarke was instructed to report on the deficienicy in securities (goods pledged) there, but this was followed by Thomson procuring Clarke's removal from office. His key to the warehouse was then delivered to a menial servant of the company. This gave Thomson unrestricted access to the warehouse.
, Sir Archibald Grant
, William Burroughs, William Squire, of whom the last three were members of the Committee or Assistants of the Company. In October 1727, they began to buy shares in the Company. Later they also speculated in shares of the York Buildings Company
, and in Scottish mines. Before this started Grant was in debt to Thomson and Grant and Burroughs were in debt to Robinson for losses on previous share speculation. All their joint speculation was financed with the Company's money, which had been borrowed against fictitious pledges. The speculation was successful for a time, as York Buildings Company shares more than doubled in price. At that point all the partners except Robinson could have redeemed their pledges and have been left solvent, but that did not happen. In 1730, the Corporation of London petitioned for the regulation of the Charitable Corporation, as lending at an unlawful interest rate. The partners (except Grant, who was in Scotland) made further share purchases.
offering £1000 reward for his apprehension. He was described as:
Robinson returned in late November and appeared before the Company, but went overseas again because the Company would not supersede his bankruptcy. Thomson reached Rome
, where he was secured by Senor Belloni and imprisoned in the "Castle of St Angelo"
. Sir Robert Sutton
one of the Committee sought information from a correspondent in Paris, who sent on a letter from Belloni, offering terms for Thomson's return. By that time the fraud was under investigation by a Committee of the House of Commons. The letter was passed to the Committee, who were so offended by its terms that they ordered it to be burnt by the public hangman.
Charitable Corporation
The Charitable Corporation was an institution in Britain intended to provide loans at low interest to the deserving poor, including by large-scale pawnbroking. It was established by charter in 1707. Its full title was "Charitable Corporation for the relief of the industrious poor by assisting them...
, but participated in a fraudulent scheme that deproved it of the bulk of its assets.
Charitable Corporation
The Charitable Corporation was a pawnbroking enterprise, making loans against goods at "lawful interest" (then 5%) and "reasonable charges" (amounting tom another 5%). John Thomson was appointed the keeper of their main warehouse in Fenchurch StreetFenchurch Street
Fenchurch Street is a street in the City of London home to a number of shops, pubs and offices. It links Aldgate at its eastern end with Lombard Street and Gracechurch Street to the west. To the south of Fenchurch Street and towards its eastern end is Fenchurch Street railway station...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 15 November 1725, he was appointed warehouse keeper and Mr Clarke was appointed surveyor. Six months later, Clarke was instructed to report on the deficienicy in securities (goods pledged) there, but this was followed by Thomson procuring Clarke's removal from office. His key to the warehouse was then delivered to a menial servant of the company. This gave Thomson unrestricted access to the warehouse.
The Partnerships of Five and of Four
Thomson joined with the banker and broker George RobinsonGeorge Robinson (swindler)
George Robinson was an English stockbroker and swindler in the 1720s and early 1730s. A banker in Lombard Street, he was appointed the circulating cashier of the Charitable Corporation...
, Sir Archibald Grant
Sir Archibald Grant, 2nd Baronet
Sir Archibald Grant , 2nd Baronet in his early life was a company specualtor and the Member of parliament for Aberdeenshire, 1722–1732...
, William Burroughs, William Squire, of whom the last three were members of the Committee or Assistants of the Company. In October 1727, they began to buy shares in the Company. Later they also speculated in shares of the York Buildings Company
York Buildings Company
The York Buildings Company was an English company in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.-Waterworks:The full name of the company was The Governor and Company for raising the Thames Water at York Buildings...
, and in Scottish mines. Before this started Grant was in debt to Thomson and Grant and Burroughs were in debt to Robinson for losses on previous share speculation. All their joint speculation was financed with the Company's money, which had been borrowed against fictitious pledges. The speculation was successful for a time, as York Buildings Company shares more than doubled in price. At that point all the partners except Robinson could have redeemed their pledges and have been left solvent, but that did not happen. In 1730, the Corporation of London petitioned for the regulation of the Charitable Corporation, as lending at an unlawful interest rate. The partners (except Grant, who was in Scotland) made further share purchases.
Collapse
In October 1731, Robinson and Thomson fled to France. On 25 October Jeremiah Wainwright, the accomptant of the Company placed an advertisement in the London GazetteLondon Gazette
The London Gazette is one of the official journals of record of the British government, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are required to be published...
offering £1000 reward for his apprehension. He was described as:
Five foot seven inches high, from thirty-five to forty years old, a full oval face, large hazle eyes, with large dark bown eyebrows, inclined ot be fat, thick legs, and goes with his kneees in, supposed to go away in a blue cloth coat with gold thread buttons.
Robinson returned in late November and appeared before the Company, but went overseas again because the Company would not supersede his bankruptcy. Thomson reached Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, where he was secured by Senor Belloni and imprisoned in the "Castle of St Angelo"
Castel Sant'Angelo
The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as the Castel Sant'Angelo, is a towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, Rome, Italy. It was initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family...
. Sir Robert Sutton
Robert Sutton (diplomat)
Sir Robert Sutton KB was an English diplomat and then politician.-Early life:He was the elder son of Robert Sutton of Averham, Nottinghamshire, and his wife, Katherine, the daughter of the Revd William Sherborne of Pembridge, Herefordshire...
one of the Committee sought information from a correspondent in Paris, who sent on a letter from Belloni, offering terms for Thomson's return. By that time the fraud was under investigation by a Committee of the House of Commons. The letter was passed to the Committee, who were so offended by its terms that they ordered it to be burnt by the public hangman.