Trial decision delayed
Kaitaia woman Toddy Shepherd, accused of stealing more than $100,000 from a national disability support charity, was to have learned the decision of Judge Deidre Orchard last week, after a trial in the Kaitaia District Court earlier this month, but now has to wait a little longer.
Shepherd denied six representative charges of theft by a person in a special relationship, and one of obtaining by deception.
All charges, involving more than $103,000, relate to alleged offending between 2012 and 2015 while she worked for CCS Disability Action as Honongo Rawhiti regional manager.
Judge Orchard was to have released her decision in the Kaitaia District Court on Thursday, but had not completed the process. She has now set the nominal date of April 26 for the decision to be released electronically.
It is alleged Shepherd’s offending occurred two years before she took up her current role as academy director for the Sweet As trade training course run by Kaitaia’s He Korowai Trust. She was charged after being employed by the trust. She is now described on the trust ‘s website as deputy CEO of He Korowai.