Chapter 100
After he’d finished speaking to Ashby, Hardearn had gone with his junior underwriters to the Bligh & Bounty to meet a contingent of brokers from City First. At the head of their group was David Wellbourne, City First’s principal marine broker in London for shipping contracts.
No-one discussed business. An assortment of conversations had got under way at the same time about football, women and money. Wellbourne merely looked on. He left the exchange of flattery and false comradeship to the underwriters and junior brokers. The jokes and veiled sarcasm bored him. However, when he heard the name ‘Ashby’ mentioned, he listened into his neighbours’ conversation. Hearing the words ‘fraud’ and ‘Cape Town’, he moved away from the heated debate about England’s team in the Euro Cup Final to find out more.
“Hello Nick. Uh, what’s this about Ashby ?” ‘Nick’ was a junior underwriter at the Hardearn Syndicate.
“Ah, David.....I was just saying that we had a call earlier today from Plantation’s marine desk about a huge claim we paid on a Greek ship years ago – the Aegean Star which.....”
“Aegean Star ? What about it ? What has Ashby and Plantation to do with that ? Were they reinsuring the higher layers of cover ?”
“Yes, they were. But the amazing thing about the Aegean Star is that it didn’t sink at all. Ha, ha. It's apparently come back to life in South Africa and Ashby found it there. Imagine that – it came up again out of the Med. What do you think of that ? Ha ha.”
“What is he doing in South Africa ?”
“I don’t know – but if it's true, Hermes Shipping are in a lot of hot water – if they’re really fraudsters, someone is going to do a few years sewing mailbags.”
And after Wellbourne had extracted as much further detail as he could get (which wasn’t easy – Hardearn’s assistant was rather drunk), he quickly rang his office from the telephone on the bar and was told that Stuart Grant would be back from lunch at four o’clock.
At precisely four on the dot, Wellbourne was sitting in Grant’s office, waiting for him. Secretly, he disliked Grant and thought him useless as a director. Wellbourne was angry with his superiors for being passed over. He would have been a better director than Grant, he thought, but Grant had gone to a public school and he hadn’t. Grant was well known for mistreating subordinates and Wellbourne tried his best to avoid him. Yet this time, the news about Ashby had to be delivered personally : Grant had broked the contract and was in the frame along with Hellas Global.
When Grant finally arrived and heard Wellbourne’s news, he was uncertain what to do.
“Do you remember how Plantation tried to drag in the Aegean Star at the hearing ? What’s Ashby playing at ? The only connection with the Stratos was the same master on both ships – and the fellow’s in prison in Athens.”
“At the hearing, Elefthriou said it was all the Captain’s fault – that he decided to sink his own ship and they had nothing to do with it – that it was barratry. Do you believe him ?”
“I don’t know – but Ashby wouldn’t be in Cape Town unless it had something to do with the Stratos claim, of that I’m fairly certain. Let’s speak to Ridgefords about it.”
Two hours later, when the courts had pulled down the shutters for the day and everyone’s diaries had emptied, the largest conference room on the top floor of No. 4 Henry Fielding’s Buildings in the Inner Temple was fully occupied. Monty Ransome QC was at the head of the table, in the leading role of judge. Richard Garrick sat adjacent to him. Millward and Frances Keen sat facing Grant and Wellbourne, with Frances Keen conscious of roving eyes. At the end of the table were Elefthriou and Thanakis.
Unbeknown to the Greeks, the legal set had taken fright at Wellbourne’s news about the Aegean Star. The time had arrived for some straight answers. If convincing explanations were not forthcoming from Hellas Global, their lawyers might withdraw from the case en masse.
Ashby’s discovery of the Aegean Star in South Africa had provoked a debate. Christoforou had been the master of both the Captain Stratos and the Aegean Star. Both ships were supposed to have sunk, except that the Star had miraculously re-appeared in Cape Town.
Plantation had alleged that the Stratos had been scuttled. It was out to prove a conspiracy between Christoforou who was obviously a criminal – and Hellas Global, over whom there was now a huge question mark. Ultimately, Plantation might succeed.
The pervading odour of fraud was growing stronger, not weaker. Ransome, Garrick, Millward and Keen feared their professional reputations were now on the line.
If it was known they’d promoted a claim by fraudsters against one of the largest reinsurers in London, no insurer or broker would go near them. They would be quietly blacklisted. Pubs and gossip go hand in hand and lawyers are fair game : their astronomical fees make them so.
When everyone had settled their papers, Ransome opened the meeting, in the practised manner of a judge in court. Twice a year he sat as a Recorder, a type of junior judge. He relished the power and authority rather than bowing and scraping to the bench which he did each day. In his early years at the bar, he’d done his fair share of criminal work, as prosecutor and defender. That afternoon, he was prosecuting.
“We’ve all heard the news that Plantation has apparently located the Aegean Star in Cape Town in the last few days – which seems astonishing, I have to say. This followed the arrest of the master of the Captain Stratos who suddenly turned up alive in Athens where he is under arrest. Now, we must assume that Plantation will somehow use their discovery of the Aegean Star to prevent the payment out of court being made to Hellas Global. The obvious connection between the Aegean Star and the Captain Stratos is that both ships had the same master, Constantinos Christoforou.”
At that point, the lawyers along with Grant and Wellbourne all looked at Elefthriou who returned their stare.
“Well, Mr Elefthriou ?”
“We had no connection with the Aegean Star.”
“You did however, engage Christoforou as the master of the Captain Stratos, did you not ? Robert Ashby alleged in court that Christoforou was alive. No-one believed him. Then he was proved correct. He also alleged that Christoforou had scuttled the Aegean Star and that fraud was involved. At the moment, we do not know how the Aegean Star turned up in Cape Town. What we do know is that it didn’t sink. Ashby was proved right again – there was fraud. At the hearing, you repeatedly denied knowing anything about the Aegean Star or that Christoforou was its master. Are you still saying that was the case – that you knew nothing about the Aegean Star ?”
“I told you. No-one mentioned it to me and I read nothing about it.”
“Mr Elefthriou.....I should perhaps warn you that in this country there are penalties for perjury – for lying to the court. If Ashby shows that you must have known about the Aegean Star or if Christoforou himself says as much – then criminal charges might be brought against you and Mr Thanakis here in England and anyone else who assisted you if you were pursuing a false claim.....”
“But I have told you many, many times,” said Elefthriou insistently as a light perspiration was discernible on his brow, “I never knew anything about the Aegean Star. Anyway, what has it to do with us ? Our ship was the Captain Stratos and we no longer have a ship. You are my lawyers – why are you asking me these questions which Plantation asked. They didn’t believe what I said. Are you saying you don’t believe me ?”
The embarrassment felt by the others was palpable. Garrick’s face bore an ironic smile as he stared at his papers on the table ; Ransome was the epitome of self-righteous authority ; the brokers stole glances at Frances Keen ; Millward spotted this but wanted claims work from them ; he would invite them for a drink when the conference ended.
“Mr Elefthriou, you must understand, it really isn’t a question of us not believing you. Have the Greek police spoken to you after Christoforou was arrested ?”
“I have heard nothing from the police.”
“If I
were you, I would be ready to answer their questions. Plantation are sure to ask the police to contact you.”
“That doesn’t worry me.”
“Be that as it may, the situation is somewhat different here in England. I fully expect Plantation will approach the judge again to re-open the case. What I’m asking you here today may at some point be asked by the judge, especially if Plantation’s enquiries produce further revelations.”
“Why should the judge not believe us ? We went through a very, long court hearing after waiting two years. The judge agreed with us and said that Plantation should pay our claim. It cost us a lot of money to do that.”
The meaning was not lost on the lawyers. The four of them felt slighted : Elefthriou was inferring they had put their fees ahead of any qualms about a spurious claim ; now that all the work had been done and their bills had been paid, morality came to the fore.
Ransome was smouldering.
“Mr Elefthriou. Plantation said throughout the hearing that you and the ship’s master, Christoforou arranged to sink the Captain Stratos together. They have already proved that Christoforou – the master you engaged – is a criminal and they are only a short step away from showing there are real doubts about your claim.”
“What doubts ? There are no doubts. The claim is genuine.”
“Unfortunately, I have to tell you......the judge may now think very differently – he may well consider that you and Christoforou at some point got together and agreed that he should sink the Captain Stratos and that you would then pursue a claim against Plantation which would be shared between the both of you. If that’s what really happened, it's better that you admit any wrongdoing now, rather than all of it coming out later on.”
Elefthriou said nothing but looked away in impatience.
Ransome was undeterred. “That is how things appear at the moment, I regret to say.”
“That may be your view, Mr Ransome but I say very clearly to you – you are wrong,” shouted Elefthriou. “We have paid you to continue with our claim and that is what we expect.” And muttering something in Greek to Thanakis, they gathered their papers and walked out of the chambers without a further word.
Unknown to anyone, by the end of the day, they had left London. Whether they returned to Athens or somewhere else in Greece, no-one could say.
Plantation A Legal Thriller Page 100