Mount lodges appeal from jail over ‘excessive’ fraud sentence
Convicted fraudster Tony Mount believes the sentence handed to him last year was ‘‘excessive and contrary to the principles of justice’’.
Fairfax has received Mount’s reasons for appeal, lodged in response to his conviction and sentence for the fraud trial in October last year.
In December, the former financial adviser was sentenced in the Nelson court after he was found guilty of 18 counts of theft by failing to account, 48 of theft by a person in a special relationship, altering a document with intent to deceive, obtaining by false pretence and eight of obtaining by deception. The Crown had proved he had ripped off clients of his business, Independent Financial.
In the October judge-alone trial before Judge Arthur Tompkins, it was heard that over a decade, Mount stole $510,671 from the 18 complainants in the indictment by inflating the purchase price of investments bought on their behalf, and by deflating the sale price of investments sold or redeemed.
Mount lodged the appeal from Christchurch Men’s Prison in January this year, where he is currently serving a six-year, ninemonth sentence.
In it he lists his reasons for appeal, stating the conviction ‘‘rested on insupportable findings of fact and applied wrong principles of law’’.
He said the verdicts were ‘‘unreasonable and unable to be supported having regard to the evidence’’.
He said the judge failed to recognise there was a difference between an allegation of failure to invest and the Crown’s evidence of deliberate misreporting and an obligation to invest all monies.
In the appeal document, Mount challenged the evidence before the court, that it failed to establish any loss or misappropriation of funds by him, or that a special relationship existed between the parties.
He also said the judge ‘‘failed to recognise the appellant’s rights’’ referring to the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act, ‘‘by not acknowledging the need for the appellant to receive evidence as to court procedure by way of amicus’’.
He went on to write this had been highlighted to the judge at pretrial callovers.
Mount also claimed there was prejudice caused by an ‘‘unreason- able delay’’ in the four years it took from the charges to be laid, to last year’s trial, and the bail conditions applied to him during that time.
Earlier this month Mount pleaded not guilty to fresh charges of perjury and falsifying evidence, to be heard by a jury.
Mount will be represented by Nelson lawyer Steven Zindel on the new charges, using legal aid.
They were related to the prior legal proceedings against Mount, involving him handing over a laptop and documents to police.
The perjury charge related to a civil case where Mount had to pay $2.84m to former clients.