KEY POINTS:
A Whangarei woman who cashed a $25,000 cheque meant for charity that she found on the street has been jailed for 10 months.
Elizabeth Colleen Savage, 31, of Tikipunga, was sentenced in the Whangarei District Court on Wednesday by Judge Lindsay Moore. She had earlier pleaded guilty to obtaining $25,000 by deception and two charges of breaching community work.
The cheque was meant for the Whangarei Disability Activity Centre, which supports disabled children and their families. It was written out to a woman associated with the centre and was not crossed.
Judge Moore said that in January this year Savage went to the Kiwibank in Rathbone St and inquired about cashing the cheque.
She was told the bank did not have the money readily available and was asked to return a few days later.
Savage did return and successfully cashed the cheque for $25,000.
Crown prosecutor Aaron Dooney said Savage had claimed to be the mother of the person the cheque was written to, but that was disputed by defence lawyer Mike Powell.
Mr Powell said Savage was not asked for identification and did not pass herself off as anyone but herself.
He was highly critical of Kiwibank, saying that had the staff member involved followed procedures the cheque would not have been cashed.
Judge Moore said that when police caught up with Savage in May she had spent all the money.
"In four months she got rid of about a $1000 a week on average."
He noted that Kiwibank had initially indicated it would reimburse the money but later decided against that because the cheque had not been crossed.
As a result the charity had missed out on the generous donation.
The judge said the offence warranted a starting point of 18 months' jail but agreed to reduce it to 10 months because of Savage's guilty plea and other factors.
He also ordered Savage to pay reparation of $40 a week for three years after her release from jail.
- NZPA
