Bank employee imprisoned

Press, 21 October 1989, Page 6

Bank employee imprisoned

PA Hamilton A former United Building Society bank clerk was sentenced to a year’s jail when she appeared in the District Court in Hamilton on Thursday on 54 charges of dishonesty.

Violet Hazel Waerata Mahanga, aged 30, who had earlier pleaded guilty to the charges involving $103,598, was sentenced by Judge Green.

The charges included false accounting, forgery, theft by failing to account and using documents for pecuniary advantage.

Her Counsel, Mr Nitin Deobhakta, said the building society was a giant institution and the theft must be put into perspective with this.

A complex system of safety measures existed but Mahanga was able to commit the offences.

“She is a very intelligent individual. She would be valuable to society if she used her intelligence and skills to help,” he said. Jail would do nothing for her and she had considerable whanau support which would assist her, he said. Judge Green said Mahanga had committed the 54 offences in a

period of 15 months and was unable to show where the money went. “The climate today is to treat these matters less seriously,” Judge Green said.

But Mahanga had made a “constant raid on the assets of the company,” he said. Judge Green said counsel had submitted that the complainant company had large sums available and the loss was infinitesimal in comparison. “But it is not infinitesimal to the ordinary man or woman in the street,” he said.