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Another former contractor has been sentenced to jail for his role in promoting investments in the Courtenay House group of companies, whose sole former director Tony Iervasi was sentenced to 11 years imprisonment in September over the scam.
David Sipina, who did not know the Courtenay House businesses functioned as a Ponzi scheme but was aware they provided unlicensed financial services advice, was sentenced to three years in jail to be served by way of an intensive correction order.
The order is similar to that received by former contractor Athan Papoulias, who was sentenced to two years imprisonment in May last year, also to be served by way of an intensive corrections order and including 120 hours of community service.
Sipina, of Prairiewood NSW, received approximately $3.9 million in commissions through his work as a contractor for Courtenay House which went into liquidation in May 2017.
The group of companies ostensibly offered investments in forex and futures markets, but only 3 per cent of the funds received were actually traded. Iervasi admitted in court that the businesses functioned as a Ponzi scheme to raise $180 million from around 585 investors.
Sipina’s role in the scheme was to recruit and manage 215 investors, and market the scheme both online and in person between June 2015 and April 2017.
Sipina pleaded guilty on 20 December in the Coffs Harbour District Court to two charges related to his involvement in the Courtenay House matter.
The first charge related to aiding and abetting Iervasi to carry on an unlicensed financial services business, and the second related to dealing with money that he believed to be proceeds of crime worth $1 million or more.
"ASIC is committed to investigating people who engage in and profit from dishonest conduct," says ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court.
"Mr Spina’s sentencing should be a deterrent to those who operate outside of the law and whose actions can have a detrimental effect on consumers who entrust their money with others."
The liquidation process for Courtenay House is ongoing, and liquidators have distributed dividends of 28 cents in the dollar to date.
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