Three years' jail for fraudster
The man had in March pleaded guilty to stealing $1.4 million.
A man who went from “sound business practices” to swindling investors out of $1.4 million has been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.
In March, Jonathan Graham West pleaded guilty to five charges laid by the Serious Fraud Office for theft by person in a special relationship while a director of The Investment Centre Ltd and Matrix Futures Ltd, which he operated between 1994 and 2013.
In the Tauranga District Court today he was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment.
Mr West offered financial planning advice, investment strategies and investment reporting for clients mostly situated in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.
But while the clients initially saw “satisfactory returns” from “sound business practices,” between 2008 and 2013 Mr West used clients’ funds outside the agreed terms or for his own purposes.
The offending amounted to about $1.4 million.
SFO director Julie Read says it is important for investors to take care to protect themselves.
“Investors should ask questions of their advisers about where their money will be invested and on what terms and they should closely monitor their investments asking for copies of all relevant documentation.”
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Hamish McNicol
Thu, 12 May 2016
Thu, 12 May 2016
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Three years' jail for fraudster
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