Debbie Ann Mauger, 57, was on a salary of $85,000 when she made a series of fraudulent payments, with expense labels like “advertising”, from Belle Property Sandringham’s business account to her own bank account, stealing $853,000 in total.
Her lawyer Jason Gullaci told the County Court of Victoria on Thursday that she put more than half of it into the pokies. The court was told the business nearly went under after the massive theft between December 2016 and February 2020 when an accountant started asking questions about the dodgy expenses and Ms Mauger quit.
She pleaded guilty to three counts of theft on Thursday and was told by Judge Rosemary Carlin that she would “inevitably” be jailed when sentenced. In a victim impact statement, Belle Property Sandringham owner Stephen Tickell said he had considered Ms Mauger almost like family, and her betrayal had scarred him.He and director Jennifer Dwyer were considering retirement but were forced to put that thought aside as they endeavoured to pay back creditors Ms Mauger had been secretly lying to about payments.
I hope this thief goes to jail for a very long time.