User:858rine/sandbox

William Wreathock, also known as Wreathocke, Wreathcock, was an attorney operating in London in the 18th century.

In 1735, William Wreathock was a Hatton Garden attorney, famous for being one of the two lawyers implicated in the Highwayman's Case: he was involved with the criminal low-life, both in his role as solicitor, by creating fake alibis for his clients, and as a culprit himself. He was part of the Maccray gang, though he was called the "General" because he was the one giving orders, and, when Thomas Maccray was executed in August 21st 1735, he became the de facto leader. In the following months, Wreathock, worried by de Veil's zeal, sent his men to Leicester Fields to kill him. These attempts failed, and Julian Brown, a member of the gang, panicked and turned evidence against his former leader, confessing to Sir Thomas de Veil in October, 1735.The case was built around the robbery of Dr Nathaniel Lancaster, which had happened on June 11th of the same year, and for which the late Maccray had been acquitted thanks to a fake alibi fabricated by William Wreathock, who had been his attorney. Julian Brown gave his testimony, describing the events of the night and Wreathock's following machinations: the latter defended himself during the trial by noting that he was a solicitor with a fairly sizable income, and, as such, didn't need to become a highwayman to survive.Wreathock was found guilty of highway robbery, and sentenced to death; the sentence was then commuted to transportation to Australia, and he was ultimately pardoned.