The accused, facing charges of fraud and forgery, brought a Rowbotham application seeking a stay of proceedings pending the appointment of state-funded counsel on the morning his trial was scheduled to commence.
The court reviewed the extensive procedural history, noting the accused's repeated changes of counsel and previous adjournments.
Applying the Rowbotham criteria, the court found the accused failed to demonstrate that he had been denied Legal Aid, failed to prove indigence given evidence of substantial assets, and failed to show that the charges were sufficiently complex to require counsel for a fair trial.
The application was dismissed as a final attempt to delay the trial.
