SFO lays 110 charges in loan fraud case
The Serious Fraud Office has laid a combined total of 110 charges against seven people alleged to have participated in a loan fraud involving Dunedin-based vehicle finance company, MTF.
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The Serious Fraud Office has laid a combined total of 110 charges against seven people alleged to have participated in a loan fraud involving Dunedin-based vehicle finance company, MTF.
As NBR reporterd this morning, all seven of the accused appeared in the Auckland District Court today.
Mark James Whelan (38), formerly an Auckland-based retail dealer for MTF and later a franchisee of the company, is facing 25 individual charges and 41 joint charges of obtaining by deception under the Crimes Act.
The SFO alleges that while in those positions and between July 2005 and February 2009, Mr Whelan wrote a number of loans in the names of family, friends and associates using various non-existent assets as security. He is accused of obtaining loans totalling $4.9 million and using those funds for personal gain, including the purchase of land, servicing of personal debts, and investing in a futures trading scheme.
“These individuals have allegedly colluded together to defraud MTF, to the detriment of the business. Where we see instances such as this, in which any party is suspected of knowingly taking advantage of their role or association with a company, the SFO will take decisive action to ensure that those involved are held to account," SFO chief executive Adam Feeley said.
Six other individuals are facing joint charges under the Crimes Act for their roles in obtaining illegal funds under Mr Whelan’s scheme. They are: Richard Michael Barnett (43), 16 charges; Jonathan Earle Chiswell (35), three charges; Clark Antony Lewis (35), six charges; Brett Royce Donaldson (49), seven charges; Steward Travis Saunders (42), one charge; and Karl Sean Toussaint (40), five charges. Mr Chiswell, Mr Lewis and Mr Whelan are also facing a further three joint charges.
The SFO opened its investigation into Mr Whelan in September 2010.
NBR staff
Wed, 14 Sep 2011
Wed, 14 Sep 2011
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SFO lays 110 charges in loan fraud case
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