Fraud should not see loss of trust - Plunket

Plunket Bay of Plenty is urging the community not to lose confidence in the service, after the branch's former treasurer was jailed yesterday for fraud.

Michelle Margaret Hyndman, 38, pleaded guilty to 421 charges of using a document for pecuniary advantage, which netted her more than $155,000 from the Plunket Society.

She was jailed for 2-1/2 years by Judge Christopher Harding in Tauranga District Court. He also ordered her to pay Plunket $25,000 in reparations, at a minimum of $50 a week after her release.

Plunket Bay of Plenty official Sandra Coley said she hoped the incident had not affected the public's trust in Plunket.

"Our faith and our belief in what we do has not diminished in any way, so we are really hoping that the public can be really reassured that we have a very, very strong and committed team in the Bay of Plenty."

Ms Coley said Plunket already had robust systems in place to guard against fraud but would be looking to improve those systems.

The court was told Hyndman had been responsible for money handling, receiving donations and paying debts at the branch between June 2003 and January 2008.

She began signing cheques for cash in her own name, and using a forged counter-signature.

Hyndman told police a marriage breakup had contributed to her decision to steal the money.

- NZPA