SFO charges former MediaWeb director

SFO charges former MediaWeb director

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has laid Crimes Act charges against Victor John Clarke (61), in the Auckland District Court.

The charges against Mr Clarke consist of two false accounting charges, one charge of using a forged document and one charge of obtaining by deception. The charges relate to his conduct as a director of the company MediaWeb Limited (MediaWeb).

Mr Clarke was responsible for overseeing the accounting and financial aspects of the business.

The SFO alleges that in this role, Mr Clarke falsified financial statements to present a positive picture of MediaWeb’s financial position, created fictitious entries in MediaWeb’s accounting system to obtain money from a lending institution, forged emails, and failed to disclose the true financial position of MediaWeb to obtain funding from a Trust. Mr Clarke’s alleged offending enabled him to obtain money and access to loan facilities of approximately $2.2 million.

SFO Director, Julie Read said, “Financial crime can have an impact on the cost of doing business for the whole community as well as causing harm to the lives and prosperity of those who are the victims of the crime. The SFO is working hard to combat these crimes to ensure New Zealand is a safe place to do business.”

Mr Clarke will next appear at the Auckland District Court on 6 October 2015.

ENDS

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