Stolen cash spent on cars, casinos

Richard Beven.
Richard Beven.
A former Wanaka Lakes Health Centre manager convicted of stealing $730,000 had similar previous convictions, Judge Christina Cook said yesterday.

Judge Cook, in the Queenstown District Court, said the charges against Richard Gregory Beven (41) were "extremely serious'' and Beven had similar convictions stemming from 2005.

According to the 2005 Serious Fraud Office annual report, Beven used settlement authorities from a motor vehicle finance company for fictitious or historical purchases and paid about $1million into his own account. He admitted defrauding his employer and was sentenced to three and a-half years' jail.

The SFO report does not say where the offending took place or name the company for which Beven had worked.

The court yesterday heard Beven, of Wanaka, splashed the cash from his Wanaka theft on international travel, cars, casinos and a 40th birthday party for himself at exclusive Queenstown golf club The Hills.

He was convicted yesterday morning after admitting theft in a special relationship from operating company Wanacare Ltd and false accounting.

Beven denied a charge of theft in special relationship, of stealing $57,194 from a Primary Health Organisation through his company, Lakes After Hours. He elected a judge-alone trial on that matter.

Prosecuting Sergeant Ian Collin said Beven transferred $670,713 from the Wanacare Ltd accounts to his personal bank accounts via the internet between August 2011 and October 2015.

He also paid himself a full gross wage and diverted additional funds to ensure PAYE tax was paid to Inland Revenue on his declared income.

That resulted in a further loss to the company of $59,803.

Sgt Collin said "initial analysis of the defendant's bank accounts indicates ... spending on lifestyle, including travel, both international and domestic, regularly purchasing meals, going to bars and spending at bottle stores, spending at casinos.

"The funds have been used to pay off credit cards, pay rents for himself and his family members, paying leasing and financing on vehicles.''

Sgt Collin said in September 2014 Beven spent $23,628 at The Hills golf resort on a 40th birthday party for himself and his twin brother. He invited people from the medical centres he worked with, including victims of the theft, saying that his brother, a lawyer from Australia, was funding the event, Sgt Collin said.

Beven also bought and sold $388,522 worth of shares between March 2012 and 2015.

"The manner of these transactions indicates they were undertaken to hide the origin of the funds.''

At times, there were insufficient funds in the Wanacare account to pay outstanding debts. Knowing that failing to pay these debts would expose his offending, he reapplied $167,392 from his own accounts.

Therefore, the total loss to Wanacare was $563,125. It has also spent $39,385 on accounting and general costs to find out what Beven stole and sort out "the mess''.

Judge Cook said in her view "a period of imprisonment must really be the only outcome in front of the court''.

She granted Beven bail to enable him to attend an appointment on Wednesday, and ordered him to surrender himself to the Otago Correctional Facility, at Milburn, no later than 5pm that day, where he would be remanded in custody.

She ordered a presentence report and referred Beven to restorative justice before his sentencing on October 17.

A case review hearing will be held on August 23 on the charge he denies.

Wanacare Ltd was established when a group of medical professionals built a facility housing Wanaka's two main medical practices, physiotherapists, a pharmacist and an optometrist. Beven was appointed general manager after being project manager for the building.

The three Wanacare Ltd directors, Simon Brebner, Andrew McLeod and Virginia Rutledge, said in a statement yesterday they were pleased to see a conclusion to "this unfortunate episode''.

The centre's new manager is Heather McClintock.

 

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