Fraudster appeals length of jail term

A former travel agent jailed for stealing more than $700,000 from 91 victims has appealed against the length of her prison sentence.

In February, Nadene Cheree Chapman was sent to prison for three years after pleading guilty to two charges of using a document to gain pecuniary advantage and one of theft by a person in a special relationship.

Chapman, a former director of Waitara Travel, stole $707,737 over a 20-month period.

The business went into liquidation in June 2016 about the same time she was arrested and charged in relation to the theft, after travel bookings were either not made or irregularities were found regarding arrangements.

Yesterday, an appeal against the length of her prison sentence was heard in the High Court.

Wellington-based lawyer Joseph Griffiths, who represented Chapman at the hearing, said the starting point for the offending, set at five years by sentencing Judge John McDonald, was too high.

Griffiths argued the judge had erred by failing to take into account that the offending had not been motivated by greed and then had set a starting point based on other theft and fraud cases where personal gain was a driving factor.

He argued Chapman’s offending was the result of the ‘‘disastrous’’ state of her business affairs where she effectively ‘‘robbed Peter to pay Paul’’. Griffiths said Chapman ‘‘essentially lost everything’’ as a result.

Justice Helen Cull said while the loss was one factor of the offending, she said the breach of trust involved in the case was something which bothered her.

Crown prosecutor Stephanie Simpkin said the sentencing judge was fully aware of the factors behind Chapman’s offending and that an appropriate starting point for the jail sentence was reached.

Justice Cull reserved her decision.