Gym manager guilty of lifting $14,000 from clients

A GYM manager swindled more than $14,000 out of 36 different members to help fund a life filled with holidays and clubbing, a court has been told.

The woman was described by Magistrate Pam Dowse as “methodical and calculated” in running the 19-month scam which involved promising discounts if members of a Gold Coast gym paid her $395 directly.

The scam began just three weeks after the woman began working at the gym.

She pleaded guilty in the Southport Magistrates Court yesterday to three counts of fraud, two counts of stealing as a clerk and servant and one count of breaching bail.

“You were given a great deal of trust … within three weeks money was disappearing,” Ms Dowse said.

The woman was sentenced to 18 months prison which was suspended for an operational period of three years. She was also ordered to pay $14,279 in restitution.