The Canberra Times brings word that one Timothy Patrick Cousins has been sentenced to four years without parole (but two of them in weekend detention) for embezzling $1.2 million from the Catholic Education Office.
The senior payroll officer used his high level access to create fictional employees, reopen the accounts of former employees and, on some occasions, disguise his transactions as stipends paid to nuns and priests.
Detectives, eventually tipped off by an anonymous letter, managed to track the 51-year-old swindler’s digital paper trail all the way to bank accounts in Thailand. Some of the money was apparently used to buy land and build a house in Thailand.
Police say Cousins confided in his daughters after he was found out, describing the fraud as being ”like gambling” and saying he could not stop.
Good luck to him getting a job anywhere else when he gets out.
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Forgive me Father, for I have sinned…
I wonder what happens to the house in Thailand.
How does that sentence add up when the payroll clown whom knocked off $140 thou from Anglicare got 3 years with non parole of 2? A mil a a lot of freight. A 2 year send up for a mil? Sounds tempting!
Doesn’t the Catholic Church just forgive criminals and move them quitely to another parish/school ?
Oh, that’s right, this is about money.
Fingers crossed the Church get at least some of their money back
fabforty said :
Yes – you’re thinking of paedophilia.
Havok said :
Because if anyone needs cash it’s the Catholic Church!
The legal system continues to go soft on white-collar crime. If he’d robbed that amount of money from a bank he’d be put away for a decade, minimum.
Havok said :
Why? Don’t they have enough already!
I think with all the tax organised religion get away with not paying, they should consider themsleves in front anyway.
What happened with turning the other cheek?
fabforty said :
+1 for this point of view.
Havok said :
Or they could just sell some of their gold, artworks or Pope’s hats…
Alderney said :
At the risk of not running with popular opinion, I couldn’t see anything in the article about the church trying to recover the money.
In my opinion stealing a lazy mil from the catholic church is no where near as bad as say kidnapping and beating a man. If Tim receives 4 years for this shouldn’t the likes of say Matt Massey who I might add is a repeat offender, be sentenced to say a minimum of 15 years? Just a thought however I’d love to hear what other people think.
Skidd Marx said :
Because this method doesn’t require terrorising his victims at gun point. I agree the sentence seems a little soft, but it is the ACT Supreme Court.