John Hughes (c.1766- ) was found guilty on 15 March 1784 at Maidstone, Kent, of assault on a highway and theft of a watch, ring, three guineas and 15 shillings in money. His death sentence was commuted to 7 years transportation to Africa. He was sent to the Censor hulk, where he remained until he embarked for New South Wales on the Alexander in January 1787, arriving in Sydney in January 1788 as part of the First Fleet.
Hughes was present in the colony in 1788 but there too many John Hughes in the colony after that year to be certain which one — if any — might be him.
* information from Mollie Gillen, The Founders of Australia: A Biographical Dictionary of the First Fleet (1989), p 162
'Hughes, John (c. 1766–?)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/hughes-john-31319/text38713, accessed 3 December 2023.
c. 1766
Crime: highway robbery
Sentence: death
Commuted To: 7 years
Court: Kent
Trial Date: 15 March 1784
(1784)