R v KING Anthony [2008] NSWDC 191

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: R v KING Anthony [2008] NSWDC 191 This decision has been amended. Please see the end of the judgment for a list of the amendments.

HEARING DATE(S): 18 September 2008

JUDGMENT DATE: 18 September 2008

JURISDICTION: Criminal

JUDGMENT OF: Murrell SC DCJ

DECISION: Convicted and sentenced to two years and five months imprisonment.

CATCHWORDS: Fraud - Dishonestly obtain by deception - King bus group - Delay resulting related matter sentence

LEGISLATION CITED: Crimes Act 1900, s178A, s 178B.

PARTIES: Regina Anthony KING

FILE NUMBER(S): 2005/11/0986; 2005/00013705

COUNSEL: Ms Seeto Mr Lowe

JUDGMENT

1 The Crown filed an ex officio indictment charging that, between June 2000 and 20 December 2000 at Port Macquarie and elsewhere in the State of New South Wales, the offender dishonestly obtained from the National Australia Bank Limited (NAB) for MB Sales Australia Pty Ltd, a valuable thing, namely a warrant for $65,785,846.50, by deception, ie by falsely representing to the NAB that 183 new Mercedes Benz buses existed.

2 On 8 September 2008, the offender entered a plea of guilty. In July 2008, the offender had foreshadowed that he would plead guilty to a more serious offence, an offence against s 176A of the Crimes Act 1900, and in August 2008 had confirmed that intention. As a result of plea negotiations between the offender's twin brother and co-offender, Peter King, and the DPP, the offender was indicted for a lesser offence, the offence against s 178BA. The maximum available penalty is five years imprisonment, as opposed to ten years imprisonment under s 176A. No standard non-parole period applies.

3 The chronology of events set out in the Crown bundle, Exhibit B. Shortly, the misconduct occurred in late 2000. In April 2003, a receiver was appointed to the offender's companies and the deception was discovered. In June 2003 the offender was arrested and charged with a related matter. He was tried in September 2006 and found guilty of the related matter. His twin-brother was tried before the same jury and the jury could not determine a verdict in relation to Peter King. In February 2007, I sentenced the offender to a five years imprisonment with a three year non-parole period to date from 8 February 2007. At that stage, there was no indication that the Crown would proceed in relation to the charge the subject of these sentencing proceedings. It was not until June 2007 that the DPP filed the relevant indictment. In August 2007, there were appeal proceedings in relation to the original trial, which resulted in a further delay in the prosecution of the subject proceedings.