Confidence trickster jailed for three years

Alexandre Firioubine - described as a hopeless dreamer by his lawyer and a confidence trickster by the judge - was jailed for three years four months today and faces paying back $425,205 to his six victims.

Christchurch District Court was told he managed to convince friends and their families that he was a successful foreign currency trader who could earn them 30 per cent returns on their investments.

Six people invested huge amounts with him - in two cases it was their life savings - but it turned out to be a Ponzi scheme where investors were paid back parts of their own money as bogus "returns" to keep the investments coming.

The money Firioubine did invest in the foreign trading account in Chicago was all lost, and he spent the rest on his own extravagant lifestyle in Auckland from 2006 to 2008.

The 28-year-old, born in Russia, has since moved to Christchurch where he has a two-year-old child and a partner who is pregnant again.

Judge Michael Crosbie imposed an 18-month non-parole term with the prison sentence because he said the normal one-third parole date was inadequate.

The court heard a 59-year-old woman read her victim impact statement, telling how she had invested about $200,000 on the promise of a weekly return on her investment, and virtually all of it was lost.

She was angry and emotionally drained, and had taken to heavy drinking and deep depression. She was now on anti-depressant medication and sleeping pills.

She described investing with Firioubine as "the worst nightmare of my life".

Judge Crosbie made an order that will see Firioubine's first victim get some of the money back quickly.

He had used $8000 of the money to pay court fines, but the judge ordered that transaction be reversed because the money had been stolen from a third party and was not his to pay.

Crown prosecutor Sara Jamieson described it as a classic Ponzi scheme, which was a substantial breach of trust among his friends and their families.

Firioubine admitted five charges of obtaining by deception.

Defence counsel James Rapley said Firioubine was now deeply ashamed and remorseful.

"The problem was that he was a dreamer and hopeless and just did not do well in the market."

But Judge Crosbie told Firioubine he was "little more than a confidence trickster".

"I'll accept that you are deeply ashamed and remorseful. Goodness knows, you should be."

The judge noted that Firioubine had been convicted in January 2006 of three charges of Trade Me fraud and sentenced to 120 hours of community work. He had then embarked on something much more sophisticated.

Judge Crosbie ordered reparation, saying that Firioubine was still a young man, with prospects.

He expected he would be able to complete his university qualifications and after his release from prison he should make arrangements with the court's collections department to make weekly repayments.

"A good proportion of your life when you come out of prison needs to be spent putting right the wrong you have done."

Firioubine accepted he was going to prison. He never asked for home detention to be considered, and arrived for the sentencing with his bag packed.

- NZPA