A former travel agent has been sentenced after defrauding employers and acquaintances of more than $62,000.
The Waihi woman was sentenced in the Auckland District Court on Wednesday to 13 months' home detention. The 29-year-old was convicted on 16 fraud-related charges, including making a false statement, following a lengthy investigation by the Auckland City Financial Crime Unit.
The offending, which began in June 2022 and continued until August 2023, spanned three separate employers in the travel consultancy sector and saw victims lose more than $62,000.
Police said the woman abused her position of trust by offering travel booking services and diverting customer payments into her personal bank account rather than following company protocols, leaving her employers to absorb the losses.
"From the outset it was clear to us that the woman’s deception knew no depths," Detective Senior Sergeant Craig Bolton said.
"It was a pattern of offending that carried across separate companies and, as noted by the court, consistently breached the trust given to her by those employers, using her industry experience to exploit their business systems and perpetrate her offending."
The woman was convicted of dishonestly using a document, obtaining by deception, accessing computer systems for dishonest purposes, and forgery.
Police said the offending did not stop there, as the woman then went on to use another person’s identity to take out a loan of nearly $30,000 through a New Zealand bank partner company.
Bolton said to "cover her tracks", the woman ordered a postal redirection without the recipient’s consent.
"This offending could have gone further, as she unsuccessfully attempted to apply for another loan, using the same identity, at a finance company."
In an effort to conceal the offending, the woman later made a false statement to police, a factor specifically referenced by the court at sentencing.
"Our fraud team continues to hold a dim view of those seeking a free ride, conning their victims out of serious amounts of money," Bolton said.
"Police will continue to prosecute offenders who cause significant harm and loss."
During sentencing, the woman was ordered to pay $15,102 in reparation within 14 days, with a further $40,904 to be repaid at a rate of $200 a week.
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