The Serious Fraud Office says the guilty plea this morning by an Auckland Council manager to corruption charges shows the dangers in not questioning a culture of gratuities.
Barrie Kenneth James George, 69, this morning at the High Court at Auckland pleaded guilty to two charges of accepting bribes as a public official when he took gifts worth $103,580 between 2005 and 2012.
The gifts included cash, and lavish overseas holidays for George and his family.
SFO Director, Julie Read welcomed the guilty plea in a press release. " The offending in this case occurred over approximately eight years. In circumstances such as these, this conduct becomes part of the culture of an organisation, and can continue unquestioned," she said.
George will be sentenced on September 1, and Justice Kit Toogood requested a report be prepared on his suitability for home detention.