3 August 2016

Guilty plea in High Court

Auckland Transport welcomes the guilty plea entered by a former employee in the Auckland High Court today.

Barrie Kenneth James George faced serious charges relating to corruption and bribery in his capacity as an official.

The charges were brought by the Serious Fraud Office following an Auckland Transport internal investigation, which began in 2012. That investigation focused on the securing and managing of contracts, primarily in the Road Corridor Maintenance area.

This followed claims of alleged impropriety, a number of which pre-dated Auckland Transport’s formation.

As a result of the internal investigation Mr George and several other staff were either dismissed or resigned, and the file handed over to the SFO.

Procurement and contractual processes were subsequently reviewed and improved, says AT Chief Executive, David Warburton.

He adds that George’s guilty plea demonstrates that the organisation’s systems are robust, however they need to be continually monitored and reviewed.

As a number of other individuals are still before the courts in relation the matter, AT is not in a position to make any further comment.

ENDS

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