A monetary adviser in Western Australia stole nearly AU$1 million (US$675,800) from shoppers to feed his playing behavior, in keeping with prosecutors. In case you ask him, although, he’s not responsible, and a courtroom will now resolve who’s telling the reality.
Mark Sebo gestures as he prepares to enter courtroom on embezzlement expenses. The previous monetary adviser allegedly stole from shoppers so he may gamble on-line. (Picture: 9News)
Mark Sebo faces 36 expenses of stealing cash from eight of his shoppers in simply 10 days in the summertime of 2019, in keeping with The West Australian. Police arrested him that very same yr, whereas his mom saved him from jail by posting his AU$$50,000 (US$33,790) bond.
The 41-year-old disgraced adviser is now returning to courtroom for his trial. The prosecution is assured it has the proof it must show he wasted the shoppers’ cash via on-line playing websites.
Private Piggy Financial institution
Sebo was in command of advising the shoppers on their superannuation funds, which wasn’t supposed to incorporate dipping into them like his personal piggy financial institution. That’s what he allegedly did, with prosecutors saying he moved their cash to his personal private and enterprise accounts.
These transactions triggered notifications to the shoppers, but it surely was too late. The cash was nowhere to be discovered, and Sebo advised the victims that they must file a criticism with the Australian Securities and Investments Fee (ASIC).
When he made his first courtroom look nearly 4 years in the past, Sebo abstained from responding to the costs. Now, as he makes his means again into the courtroom for a jury trial, he has entered a not-guilty plea.
Regardless of apparently having no authorized background, he has determined to signify himself within the case. He’s operating out of time to brush up on his protection, as his case begins on Tuesday.
If his story is to be believed, Sebo was something however a prolific gambler. The official story is that, regardless that his financial institution accounts had been allegedly frozen quickly after the complaints had been filed, nearly not one of the cash was recovered.
Sebo misplaced his license on account of the costs. Nonetheless, a web site that lists licensed advisers in Australia, au-financial-advisers.com, lists his license as lively. The positioning didn’t reply to a request for remark previous to publication.
Decade Behind Bars
Australian legislation, per Part 157 of the Crimes Act, permits for a sentence of as much as 10 years in jail for embezzlement, with the utmost penalty normally reserved for instances that seem in District Courtroom. Sebo’s case is a kind of.
It’s unlikely that Sebo will obtain the utmost sentence if Annette Roberts is an instance. From 2018 to 2020, she ripped off clients of the journey company the place she labored, stealing AU$628,598 (US$424,806) in 522 transactions.
The house owners of the journey company needed to promote two private properties and delay their retirement with the intention to make restitution to the shoppers. When she appeared in courtroom, Roberts obtained simply two years and eight months in jail.
