Bribery case told of parking manager's rapid riches

A court has heard a Wilson Parking manager accused of paying bribes went from earning $48,000 a year to running a cleaning company earning the equivalent of $1 million a year almost overnight.

Anthony Dodd, 55, appeared for a deposition hearing in the Auckland District Court yesterday.

Dodd, represented by Stephen Tee, denies one charge of corruptly giving a secret commission.

The court heard Dodd had gone from being an employee of Wilson's to running a company called Platinum Property Service.

His son-in-law, Timothy Warrington Ellis, the former regional manager of Wilson's in Auckland and his friend David Bart van Dam, the previous operations manager of Wilson's in Auckland, have already pleaded guilty to corruptly receiving secret commissions from Dodd.

They will be sentenced next month.

Judge Ray Kean heard Ellis and van Dam had abused their positions of trust within Wilson's, setting out to defraud the Hong Kong family who own the company and co-opting their wives to help them.

The Serious Fraud Office says Ellis and van Dam operated companies VistaCare Enterprises and Carpark Cleaning Services which were used to invoice Wilson's for carpark cleaning and maintenance.

SFO submissions say little if any work was done.

Their wives Jo-Ann Ellis and Katrina Richards owned Enigma, which was said to provide gardening services and hire plants to Wilson's. The SFO alleges this was also a fraud.

The court heard Red Coats Cleaning Service had traditionally cleaned Wilsons' carparks. Dodd had been an employee of Wilson's but in March 2004 he resigned, setting up Platinum Property Services and negotiating with van Dam and entering into a cleaning contract with Wilson's.

"The opportunity for a previously unheard-of company getting such a lucrative contract without prior experience arose because of the actions of Mr Ellis and Mr van Dam in dishonestly phasing out Red Coats," SFO submissions say.

The court heard that between April 2004 and January 2005 Dodd charged Wilson's $750,317 for maintenance and cleaning.

The SFO says overnight Dodd went from an employee of Wilson's earning a salary of $48,000 to operating Platinum drawing $58,000 net of tax and transferring $103,000 to his rapid save account.

Counsel for the Serious Fraud Office Andre Wiltens said between June 2004 and January 2005 Dodd, via Platinum, made four payments to Enigma totalling $325,950.

Invoices say it was for cleaning and maintenance and administration and accounting but the SFO says there was a startling lack of costs involved in Enigma achieving the income.

"The prosecution alleges the invoices were simply false, and were created in a hapless attempt to justify the payments made," SFO submissions say.

"Not only did the defendant achieve a greatly enhanced income, but Mr Ellis and Mr van Dam also got their cut out of Enigma for their part in this."