Media Release

19 October 2012

Seven years and five months sentence for deceiving B’On investors

Jacqueline Bradley (59) has been sentenced to seven years and five months’ imprisonment at the Auckland District Court today.

Mrs Bradley was found guilty by a jury in September of 75 Crimes Act charges she faced as a result of a Serious Fraud Office (SFO) prosecution.

Mrs Bradley was a director of B’On Financial Services Ltd (B’On) which she ran with her late husband. B’On sought funds from clients on the pretext of investing in various funds they had established both in New Zealand and offshore.

However, the money paid to B’On for investment was not used in accordance with the requirements of their clients. Instead it was used to make repayments to other investors, and to fund the personal lifestyle of the Bradleys through their Family Trust.

Between April 2003 and November 2009, the offending totalled $14.4 million (plus an additional AUD$840,000 from Australian investors).

Acting Chief Executive of the SFO, Simon McArley, welcomed the sentence saying, “B’On investors based their investments on a degree of trust and affinity towards Mrs Bradley. The scheme cost some investors their life savings. This is an unfortunate reminder of the danger of making investment decisions based on trust alone.”

This case marks the third prosecution involving an affinity fraud by financial advisors completed by the SFO in the last three months. Offending across these cases amounted to almost $21 million.

ENDS

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