Couple's sentenced for over $80,000 in Wage Subsidy fraud

They also have to repay $20,000 of their reparations within 40 business days or they will go to jail for 28 days.

Larissa Wright, 37, and John Silbery, 39, made 43 applications under the scheme between March and November 2020 and 28 of them were approved.

Together they admitted to four representative charges of deception for applications in the name of their two businesses, Wright Hip Hop Trends and Mirror Image Tee’s Limited.

Wright and Silbery were the only directors and shareholders of both companies.

They also admitted to one representative charge each of deception under their own names as sole traders.

Their offending included dishonestly claiming on their applications for some staff members who were not employed by the business at the time; claiming some staff as full-time when they were part-time; and applying as sole traders when they were not engaged in any sole trader business.

MSD sought reparations of the $87,986.80.

In sentencing the couple on July 23, Judge Michael Crosbie said he took into account aggravating factors of premeditation, the amount obtained, and breach of trust.

Judge Crosbie used two years and six months’ jail as a starting point and, after taking into account guilty pleas, personal factors and reparation offers, he arrived at a sentence of 16 and a-half months jail.

He converted the term to an end sentence of eight months’ home detention.

A total of 23 people have been sentenced in wage subsidy cases, another 48 people are still before the courts, and more than $826 million* has been repaid. For more information on MSD’s programme of work on wage subsidy fraud and integrity, please see here.

*figures as at 12 July