R v Eliadis

Case

[2017] ACTSC 193

18 July 2017

SUPREME COURT OF THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY

Case Title:

R v Eliadis

Citation:

[2017] ACTSC 193

Hearing Dates:

17 – 18 July 2017

DecisionDate:

18 July 2017

Before:

Murrell CJ

Decision:

Sentenced to four years’ imprisonment, two year nonparole period/  recognizance release order

Catchwords:

CRIMINAL LAW – JURISDICTION, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – Judgment and Punishment – Sentence – ACT and federal offences – arson – in company – joint participant in criminal enterprise – offender coordinated offence and provided support and payment – banking offences – plea of guilty –scheme to defraud Australian banks – principal in Greece – offender executed Australian part of scheme – participant in criminal group with foreign nationals – Australian bank accounts overdrawn – loss not recovered – ACT and federal sentencing  

Legislation Cited:

Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) ss 16A, 19(3), 20(1)(b)

Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) ss 372.1A(1), 400.4, 400.5(1)
Criminal Code 2002 (ACT) ss 334(2), 404(1), 652

Crimes (Sentencing) Act 2005 (ACT) ss 7, 33, 35, 36, 62

Cases Cited:

Cheng v The Queen [2017] NSWCCA 63

Horne v The Queen [2011] NSWCCA 225
Islam v The Queen [2016] NSWCCA 233
Kamay v the Queen [2015] VSCA 296; 47 VR 475
R v Chan (Unreported, Supreme Court of Queensland, Atkinson J, 16 December 2009)
R v Huang [2007] NSWCCA 259; 174 A Crim R 370

Thangavelautham v The Queen [2016] NSWCCA 141

Parties:

The Queen (Crown)

Leo Nicholas Eliadis (Offender)

Representation:

Counsel

Mr I Bourke SC, Ms J Paingakulam (Crown)

Mr T Hickey (Crown)

Ms T Warwick (Offender)

Solicitors

Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (Crown)

ACT Director of Public Prosecutions (Crown)

Capital Lawyers (Offender)

 File Numbers:

SCC 170 of 2016; SCC 187 of 2016

MURRELL CJ:

  1. The offender is to be sentenced for two sets of offences: an arson offence that occurred on 13 March 2014 and offences of dishonesty and criminal association that occurred between September 2013 and December 2014. 

  1. The offender was on bail until 17 July 2017.  The sentences will commence on that date. 

Proceedings in relation to the arson offence

  1. On 8 June 2017, a jury found that the offender and the co-offender, Mr Parlov, were guilty of the offence that, on 13 March 2014 at Canberra, they caused damage by fire to a building, Brierly’s Cafe, intending to do so. 

  1. Mr Parlov was the principal offender. The offender was convicted on the basis that he was a joint participant pursuant to s 45A of the Criminal Code 2002 (ACT) (Criminal Code (ACT)).

  1. Arson is an offence against s 404(1) of the Criminal Code (ACT). It carries a maximum penalty of 15 years’ imprisonment and/or a large fine.

  1. On 17 July 2017, I sentenced Mr Parlov to three years’ imprisonment. 

Facts of the arson offence

  1. On 12 March 2014, the sale of Brierly’s Cafe (the cafe) in Weston was finalised and the new owners took possession. 

  1. On the evening of 12 March 2014, there was brief telephone contact between the offenders.  There was no evidence of prior communication or planning. 

  1. That night, the offender drove his green Honda CR-V vehicle to Belconnen, where he collected Mr Parlov and drove to a car park close to the cafe.  At around midnight, Mr Parlov exited the vehicle and walked to the rear door of the cafe carrying a tin of petrol and a hammer.  He was wearing a bright coloured hooded jumper and gloves.  He forced open an unlocked flyscreen attached to the rear door of the cafe, used the hammer to smash a glass panel at the bottom of the door and tipped petrol through the hole that he had created.  He poured a trail of petrol leading away from the rear door, removed a cigarette lighter from his pocket and ignited the petrol, causing a fire within the cafe.

  1. Mr Parlov ran from the scene to where the offender was waiting in his vehicle and the pair drove away. 

  1. A fire alarm was activated.  ACT Fire and Rescue attended the scene and extinguished the fire, but not before it had caused extensive damage to the kitchen and other parts of the cafe. 

  1. In August and September 2014, the offender paid Mr Parlov for his criminal services.  The amount is unknown and it is unclear whether Mr Parlov was paid in full. 

  1. The prosecution case was based on circumstantial evidence.  Among other evidence, CCTV images of the relevant Weston car park and nearby area indicated that the vehicle of interest was a dark coloured Honda CR-V.  The offender owned such a vehicle.  The offender told lies about damage to his Honda vehicle (in relation to an undamaged area of the offending vehicle that was visible in the CCTV footage, he said that that part of his vehicle had been damaged at the time of the offence, when it had not).  The police obtained legal recordings of conversations between the offender and the co-offender and others, in which the offender repeatedly expressed concern that police would link him with the offence.  Some of the conversations referred to the payment of money by the offender to Mr Parlov.  There was an associated brief meeting between the two men that was the subject of police surveillance.  Mr Parlov’s then girlfriend gave evidence that, on an evening in March 2014, the offender had collected Mr Parlov and that, upon his return, Mr Parlov was in possession of clothing that resembled that of the arsonist in the CCTV footage taken at the rear of the cafe. 

Victim impact of the arson offence

  1. At the time of the arson, the incoming owners had not finalised their insurance arrangements.  Afterwards, they became embroiled in an insurance dispute and incurred significant legal expenses.  They suffered both capital and trading losses.  As a result of the fire, they were “emotionally and financially wrecked”.  They continue to suffer significant psychological and financial consequences as a result of the crime.

Objective seriousness of the arson offence

  1. The offence was objectively serious.  It was premeditated.  The offender collected Mr Parlov from Mr Parlov’s home.  Mr Parlov was disguised with a hooded jumper and gloves, and was equipped with a hammer and tin of petrol.  On the other hand, the offence may have been planned shortly before it occurred.  There was no evidence of communication between the offenders prior to the telephone communication at about 9.40 pm on 12 March 2014.  The offence was committed in company.  Mr Parlov committed the offence for financial gain and the offender was responsible for paying him.  The offender’s motive was not clearly established, although there was evidence that his godfather operated a cafe in the vicinity.

  1. The offence caused extensive damage and great financial and emotional cost to the incoming owners, both directly and through trading loss.  Further, the ACT suffered loss; ACT Fire and Rescue was obliged to attend the scene to extinguish the fire.  But for the relatively quick response by emergency services, the fire could have spread to other premises, causing additional damage. 

  1. On the other hand, the premises were retail premises and the incident occurred in the middle of the night when no one was at the premises, or nearby.  There was no real risk of personal injury. 

  1. The offender’s role was to coordinate the offence, provide support on the night and organise payment afterwards.  Mr Parlov’s role was to execute the offence.  As mentioned above, he did so for financial gain.  The roles of the offenders are consistent with their age difference.  Mr Parlov was 20 years old and the offender was 44 years old at the time of the offence.  Neither offender demonstrated remorse for the offence.

  1. I accept the Crown's submission that the offender was somewhat more culpable, but not significantly so.  While Mr Parlov was slightly less culpable, his subjective circumstances were less favourable.  Mr Parlov was much younger than the offender, but he was on conditional liberty at the time of the offences, he had a worse criminal history and his prospects of rehabilitation were uncertain.

Subjective circumstances

  1. The offender is 47 years old.  He was 44 years old at the date of the offence.

  1. The offender was born in Australia but is of Greek ethnic background.  He said that his Greek background and connection with family who are living in Greece, or were born there, has imposed cultural expectations on him that he will assist family members with personal and business activities and that this expectation was of some relevance to his involvement in the banking offences.

  1. The offender has no significant prior criminal history.  In 1995 in the ACT, he received a periodic detention order for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and a six-month suspended sentence for selling or supplying cannabis.  The most notable matters in his New South Wales criminal history are three offences of common assault committed in 2007 to 2008, for which the offender was fined.  The most recent offence was committed in Western Australia where, in 2008, he was fined for possessing stolen property.

  1. The offender's parents separated when he was nine years old.  For a short period, he lived with his mother in northern New South Wales.  He then moved to reside with his paternal grandparents in Canberra.  Later, he lived with his father.  He has a close relationship with his grandparents and a positive relationship with his father, but no contact with his mother.  For the past three years, the offender has been in a supportive de facto relationship.

  1. At school, the offender experienced learning and behavioural difficulties.  He required assistance with English, but coped well with mathematics.  While at school in Canberra, he assisted with his father's fruit and vegetable business, working before and after school and at weekends.  The offender left school at the beginning of Year 12 because his father became very ill and the offender assumed responsibility for his father's fruit and vegetable business.  At 18 years of age, the offender bought the business. 

  1. Over the years the offender has operated several fruit and vegetable businesses and cafes.  At one stage, he ran a lucrative computer business. 

  1. Between the 1990s and 2009, the offender lived away from Canberra.  After returning to Canberra, the offender contributed to the community by assisting to raise funds to construct a nursing home and supporting it by delivering fruit and vegetables to residents. 

  1. In 2013, the offender commenced employment as a truck driver for a fruit and vegetable wholesale business.  However, in September 2016, he suffered a cervical disc injury at work for which he is still undergoing treatment.  He has not returned to work.  He experiences numbness and altered sensation in his left arm.  He undertakes regular hydrotherapy which he finds beneficial. 

  1. A doctor has expressed some concern about the impact of custody on the offender's condition.  I accept that it is likely that the offender will have no access to hydrotherapy and limited access to physiotherapy treatment within the prison.  However, there is no clear evidence that the offender's condition will make custody significantly more onerous for him. 

  1. The offender has no problem of substance abuse. 

Sentencing purposes and other sentencing considerations relation to the arson offence

  1. In sentencing the offender for the arson offence, I must take into account the considerations in s 33 of the Crimes (Sentencing) Act 2005 (ACT) (Sentencing Act) that are known and relevant.  I have referred to the relevant features.  

  1. No comparable ACT decisions were identified.  Arson offences often involve offenders who are drunk or mentally unstable and who commit offences directed towards acquaintances or family often impulsively, motivated by anger or revenge.

  1. General deterrence is an important sentencing purpose, particularly where an arson offence has been planned.  Such offences are often relatively easy to commit and perpetrators may be difficult to detect.  Indeed, in this case, significant police resources were devoted to investigating the matter. 

  1. In this case, punishment, accountability, denunciation and recognition of harm to the victims are also important sentencing purposes. 

  1. Rehabilitation is another important sentencing purpose.  The author of the pre-sentence report assessed the offender as at low to medium risk of general reoffending and suitable for a medium to low level of intervention by Corrective Services.  The offender is a mature man with a limited criminal history.  Nothing was recorded against him during the five year period 2008 to 2013.  He gave evidence which impressed me as genuine.  I am satisfied that he is unlikely to reoffend.  Consequently, it is appropriate to impose a relatively short nonparole period. 

  1. It was accepted that a sentence of imprisonment was the only appropriate penalty. 

  1. Comparing the objective and subjective considerations applying to the offender and Mr Parlov, in sentencing the offender for the arson offence, I consider it appropriate to commence at the same starting point of three years' imprisonment. 

Proceedings in relation to the banking offences

  1. The offender pleaded guilty to the offences that:

(a)Count 1: Between 11 August 2014 and 5 December 2014, he dealt with money intending it to be an instrument of crime in relation to an indictable offence of the Australian Capital Territory, the value of the money being $50,000 or more, contrary to s 400.5(1) of the Criminal Code1995 (Cth) (Criminal Code (Cth)). The maximum penalty for this offence is 15 years' imprisonment and/or a large fine.

(b)Counts 2–12: Between 5 July 2014 and 11 December 2014, he committed 11 offences of using a carriage service to deal with identification information with the intention of passing himself off as another person for the purpose of facilitating the commission of an indictable offence against a law of the Australian Capital Territory contrary to s 372.1A(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth). The maximum penalty for each offence is five years' imprisonment.

(c)Count 13: Between 25 September 2013 and 17 December 2014, he participated in a criminal group knowing or being reckless about whether the participation contributed to criminal activity, contrary to s 652 of the Criminal Code (ACT). The maximum penalty for this offence is five years' imprisonment.

  1. The offender indicated pleas of guilty on 24 February 2017.  He entered the pleas on 1 March 2017, five days before the trial was due to start. 

  1. I accept the offender's evidence that, following a late change of lawyers, for the first time he reviewed the whole of the evidence and concluded that it was strong.  He felt shame and remorse at his involvement and decided to "own up to [his] mistakes” and plead guilty. 

  1. In relation to the Commonwealth offences, the pleas are to be taken into account insofar as they indicate remorse and/or a willingness to facilitate the course of justice.  The offender decided to plead guilty not only because he appreciated the strength of the Crown case, but also because he felt genuinely remorseful, although that realisation came to him rather late.  Consequently, in relation to the Commonwealth offences, the offender is entitled to some discount for the pleas.

  1. In relation to the ACT offence, the utilitarian value of the plea may be taken into account under s 35 of the Sentencing Act.  The utilitarian value was considerable as the plea avoided a lengthy trial.  On the other hand, as the offender conceded, the Crown case was strong.  The matters referred to in Exhibit 3 entitle the offender to a further significant discount, not only in relation to the banking offences, but also in relation to the arson offence. 

Facts relating to the banking offences

  1. The banking offences address the offender's participation in a scheme designed to fraudulently obtain money from several Australian banks. 

  1. The principal of the scheme was George Panagiotou, the offender's cousin.  Mr Panagiotou resides in Greece.  He was responsible for planning the scheme and for its overall implementation.  The scheme was moderately sophisticated.

  1. The offender resided in Canberra and he was responsible for executing activities of the scheme that were undertaken in Australia.  There is no evidence that he was involved in developing the scheme.  However, the offender's role was critical to the success of the scheme.  He was not involved in the specific transactions that caused the loss; they were undertaken through Mr Panagiotou in Greece. 

  1. In evidence, the offender said that he was “promised the world”, but in the end he received only several thousand dollars for his role in the scheme.  That may very well be an understatement.  However, there is no other evidence of the extent of the offender's financial gain.  In any event, it is plain that the offender was motivated primarily by the promise of financial gain.  A secondary consideration was that he felt cultural pressure to become involved in his cousin's scheme.

  1. Mr Panagiotou contacted the offender and asked him to assist.  Initially, the offender was asked to assist in relation to one foreign national (Vasilis Sakelliou of Greece). 

  1. In late September 2013, the offender assisted Mr Sakelliou to open six Australian bank accounts (two with the ANZ Bank, two with NAB and two with Westpac Bank).  The offender provided Mr Sakelliou with an Australian address.  The offender gave evidence that it was not until after Mr Sakelliou arrived in Australia that he realised that he was part of a scheme or “scam.”  However, from that point forward the offender was aware that he was participating in a fraudulent scheme. 

  1. In August 2014, the offender assisted Dora Argyropoulos of the United States, who came to Australia as part of the scheme.  He collected her from the airport and drove her about.  She stayed at his house.  He provided her with an Australian address to be used in her dealings with banks.  He advised her in relation to the setting up of two accounts with the St George Bank and three accounts with the NAB.

  1. In September 2014, the offender assisted Panagiotis Stavritis of Greece, who came to Australia as part of the scheme.  The offender provided Mr Stavritis with an address to use when dealing with the banks and advised him in relation to opening two accounts with the NAB. 

  1. Guided and supported by the offender, each foreign national opened a bank account or accounts with the NAB, ANZ Bank, Westpac Bank or St George Bank.  The foreign account holder obtained a linked Visa debit card which the offender forwarded to Mr Panagiotou in Greece. 

  1. To support the setting up of the Australian accounts Mr Panagiotou loaded many thousands of euros onto “MoneySafe” cards which he gave to the offender.  The offender, or a person operating under his direction, withdrew cash from the cards and deposited the cash into the bank accounts set up in the names of the foreign nationals.

  1. The offender or another participant in the scheme then advised the relevant bank that the account holder was travelling overseas and would be visiting Greece.  This step was undertaken to ensure that Visa debit card transactions in Greece would not be questioned.

  1. Mr Panagiotou “authorised” each Visa debit card, with transactions that purported to be on behalf of a Greek merchant.  Most of the “authorisations” were in the range of $8,000 to $12,000 (AUD).  The “authorisation” served to hold the “funds” for five to six business days, enabling the merchant to process the final transaction.  As a result, the accounts became significantly overdrawn.  The total amount of overdrawn funds was $552,998.52 (AUD). 

  1. Because the accounts were held by foreign nationals, the Australian banks were unable to recover the funds.  The offending behaviour ceased only when it was detected by police. 

  1. I will now consider what the offender did in relation to the three categories of offence. 

Count 1: Deal with instrument of crime

  1. Between 14 August and 5 December 2014, 28 deposits were made into three Australian bank accounts (NAB and St George Bank accounts in the name of Dora Argyropoulos and NAB account in the name of Panagiotis Stavritis) by or at the direction of the offender.  Amounts of between $1000 and $8000 (AUD) were deposited.

  1. The gravamen of this offence is that, utilising the funds on the “MoneySafe” cards over a period of almost four months and via the 28 transactions, a total of $84,500 (AUD) was deposited into the three accounts.  Each deposit was made with the intention that it would become an “instrument of crime” by facilitating the subsequent overdrawing of the accounts. 

  1. The threshold amount for an offence of this type is $50,000. Section 400.4 of the Criminal Code (Cth) creates a more serious offence involving a threshold amount of $100,000, in relation to which the maximum penalty is 20 years' imprisonment.

  1. The total loss that resulted from the offence (count 1) was $219,556.51: $104,255.42 (NAB account in the name of Dora Argyropoulos), $50,193.60 (NAB account in the name of Panagiotis Stavritis) and $65,107.49 (St George Bank account in the name of Dora Argyropoulos).  As noted above, the loss has not been recovered. 

  1. Having regard to the number of transactions, the period over which they occurred, the context in which they occurred (including, importantly, the role played by the offender), the amount involved and the related loss, this is an offence of moderate objective seriousness. 

  1. In relation to this offence, the Commonwealth prosecutor referred to a number of sentencing decisions, including: Cheng v The Queen [2017] NSWCCA 63; Islam v The Queen [2016] NSWCCA 233; R v Huang [2007] NSWCCA 259; 174 A Crim R 370; and R v Chan (Unreported, Supreme Court of Queensland, Atkinson J, 16 December 2009). Generally, those cases involved offenders who dealt with larger amounts of money and where the resulting loss was more significant than in the present case.

Counts 2–12: Deal with identification information

  1. Each of the 11 offences against s 372.1A involved the offender making one telephone call in which he passed himself off as Mr Sakelliou or Mr Stavritis. Each call was made for the purpose of facilitating the indictable offence of conspiracy to defraud, which is an offence against s 334(2) of the Criminal Code (ACT).

  1. In relation to count 2, on 5 July 2014 the offender telephoned the ANZ Bank and pretended to be Mr Sakelliou.  He quoted the relevant security code.  He said that he would be travelling overseas on the following day and would be using his Visa debit card.  The ANZ Bank Sakelliou accounts were subsequently overdrawn to a total of $93,096. 

  1. Each of counts 3–12, relates to one telephone call made by the offender to the NAB Bank on a date between 21 November 2014 and 11 December 2014 (a period of 20 days) in which the offender pretended to be Mr Stavritis.  On several occasions the offender provided the date of birth or bank identity number of Mr Stavritis.  In the first call, the offender informed the bank that he would be travelling overseas.  In the remaining calls, he asked the bank to remove a block that had been placed on an account.  Subsequently, the NAB accounts in the name of Mr Stavritis were overdrawn in the total amount of $50,193.60. 

  1. Counts 3–12 concern the NAB Stavritis accounts, which were also the subject of some of the offending conduct in count 1 (10 deposits to those accounts totalling $28,500).  I note the submission made by the Commonwealth prosecutor that the conduct in relation to counts 3–12 overlaps with that the subject of count 1. 

  1. Each of the offences in counts 2–12 was of relatively low objective seriousness.  However, taken as a whole, the offences were significant to the operation of the scheme and contributed to the very substantial financial losses that were sustained. 

  1. In relation to these offences, the Commonwealth prosecutor referred the Court to Kamay v the Queen [2015] VSCA 296; 47 VR 475, a much more serious matter, described as “the largest insider trading profit to come before an Australian court”: at [25].

Count 13: Participate in criminal group

  1. The Commonwealth offences capture particular aspects of the offender's conduct; count 13 is the only offence which addresses his overall conduct in the period September 2013 to September 2014.  During that period, the offender was involved in a criminal group that involved Mr Panagiotou, Mr Sakelliou, Mr Stavritis and


    Ms Argyropoulos.

  1. There were three main aspects to the offender's participation in the criminal group's activities. 

  1. First, the offender assisted and supported the three foreign nationals to set up accounts in Australia and provided general logistical support for them during the periods that they were in Australia for that purpose.  There is no evidence that he recruited them or made their travel arrangements, but he did assist with accommodation arrangements and transport, and he guided them in relation to the opening of bank accounts.  He communicated with innocent parties for the purpose of organising addresses that could be used by the foreign nationals in their dealings with the banks.

  1. Second, the offender deposited, or arranged for the deposit of, cash from “MoneySafe” cards into the accounts that had been opened by the foreign nationals.  This aspect of the conduct duplicates the first Commonwealth charge.  An offender cannot be punished twice for his conduct.

  1. Third, the offender posted the Visa debit cards to Greece enabling Mr Panagiotou to defraud the banks.  As stated above, the total amount of funds that was overdrawn by Mr Panagiotou was $552,998.52 (including the total losses of $362,845 associated with counts 1–12).

  1. Having regard to the period in which the offender participated in the group, the variety of ways in which he participated, the number of occasions that he did so and the extent of the resulting loss, this offence is of significant objective seriousness. 

  1. I bear in mind there is a considerable overlap between the subject matter of this offence and that the subject of the Commonwealth offences.

  1. In relation to this offence, the Commonwealth prosecutor referred the Court to two New South Wales cases dealing with a similar provision in that jurisdiction: Horne v The Queen [2011] NSWCCA 225; Thangavelautham v The Queen [2016] NSWCCA 141

Other sentencing considerations relating to banking offences

  1. Pursuant to s 16A(1) of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) (Crimes Act (Cth)), in relation to the federal offences, the Court must impose a sentence that is of a severity appropriate in all the circumstances of the offence. In addition, the Court must take into account the matters that are known and relevant under s 16A(2) of the Crimes Act (Cth).

  1. The nature and circumstance of the offences are set out above as are relevant findings in relation to the pleas of guilty.  I have noted the contents of


    Exhibit 3.  I have noted the offender's subjective circumstances.

  1. In relation to frauds on banks, general deterrence is an important sentencing consideration.  Banks must balance ease of customer access and security concerns.  It is impossible to avoid all risk of fraud.  The risk of fraud is borne by banking customers; such frauds are not “victimless”.  Further, as the facts of this case demonstrate, inquiries into banking fraud may be protracted and expensive to the public.  Consequently, general deterrence is particularly important. 

  1. In this case, there is some need for personal deterrence, but I believe that a sentence of imprisonment for any period will achieve that purpose.

  1. Virtually identical situations arise in relation to sentencing for the ACT offence of participating in a criminal group, where it is necessary to consider the sentencing purposes set out in s 7 of the Sentencing Act and the matters referred to in ss 33, 35 and 36 of the Sentencing Act.

Sentences

  1. It was submitted that the Court should consider a suspended sentence.  In my view, such an approach would involve significant leniency and would not adequately address the sentencing purpose of general deterrence, punishment, accountability and denunciation.

  1. The starting points for the sentences that I intend to impose upon the offender are:

(a)Arson: 3 years' imprisonment.

(b)Participate in a criminal group (count 13): 2 years' imprisonment.

(c)Deal with instrument of crime (count 1): 3 years' imprisonment.

(d)Deal with identification information (count 2): 9 months' imprisonment.

(e)Deal with identification information (each of counts 3–12): 6 months' imprisonment.

  1. Under s 62(1) of the Sentencing Act, sentences of imprisonment for ACT offences must commence on the day the sentence is imposed. Section 62(2) provides for exceptions for combination sentences, backdated sentences, and concurrent and consecutive sentences, but in relation only to ACT sentences. The parties agreed that the ACT sentences should commence first.

  1. The Commonwealth prosecutor submitted that, pursuant to s 19(3)(d) of the Crimes Act (Cth), the first federal sentence to commence after the end of the ACT nonparole period must commence immediately after the end of that period, without overlap. I will structure the sentences in that way, although I do not consider that s 19(3)(d) of the Crimes Act (Cth) precludes a federal sentence from commencing before the end of a nonparole period.

  1. The effect of accommodating the two sentencing regimes is that the sentences for the federal offences will run entirely concurrently.  The offences address different conduct, although there is also significant overlap.  I do not proceed on the mistaken assumption that it is appropriate for sentences to be entirely concurrent, despite the fact that they address different conduct.

  1. Including discount, I reach the following sentences:

(a)Arson: 2 years and 3 months’ imprisonment from 17 July 2017 to 16 October 2019. 

(b)Participate in criminal group (count 13):  1 year and 4 months’ imprisonment from 17 June 2019 to 16 October 2020. 

(c)Deal with an instrument of crime (count 1): 2 years’ imprisonment from 17 July 2019 to 16 July 2021.

(d)Deal with identification information (count 2): 6 six months’ imprisonment from 17 January 2021 to 16 July 2021. 

(e)Deal with identification information (each of counts 3–12): 4 months’ imprisonment (each) from 17 March 2021 to 16 July 2021. 

  1. In relation to the ACT offences, I set a nonparole period from 17 July 2017 to 16 July 2019.

  1. In relation to the federal offences, I make a recognizance release order under s 20(1)(b) of the Crimes Act (Cth) directing that the offender be released upon giving security in the sum of $100 and that he comply with conditions that he be of good behaviour for a period of two years, to commence on 17 July 2019.

I certify that the preceding eighty-eight [88] numbered paragraphs are a true copy of the Reasons for Sentence of her Honour Chief Justice Murrell.

Associate:

Date: 28 July 2017

Most Recent Citation

Cases Citing This Decision

2

R v Foster [2022] NSWDC 467
R v Arora [2022] ACTSC 39
Cases Cited

6

Statutory Material Cited

4

Cheng v The Queen [2017] NSWCCA 63
Islam v R [2016] NSWCCA 233
R v Huang; R v Siu [2007] NSWCCA 259