COVID Relief Fraudster Sentenced

23 October 2024

A Te Kauwhata man has been sentenced to home detention after ripping off the support schemes set up to help businesses trade through the COVID pandemic and filing false tax returns.

Jarryd Delroy Hector appeared in the Manukau District Court on 21 October for sentencing on 16 charges of making false claims for the Resurgence Support Payment (RSP), COVID Support Payment (CSP) and Small Business Cashflow Scheme loan (SBCS) – help he wasn’t entitled to – and filing false GST and income tax returns (grossly understating income and overstating expenses).

Hector will serve 11 months home detention and do 150 hours community service.

The three COVID-relief schemes were introduced under urgency between April 2020 and February 2022. They used a high trust model to ensure those adversely affected by the pandemic could access funds to support their businesses.

Hector was a self-employed contractor in the property management sector until February 2021. After that, he started working for salary and wages and didn’t have his own business.

Even though he didn’t meet the eligibility criteria, Hector applied to Inland Revenue in December 2021 for 4 RSPs, totalling $13,900. Each application he said he had a viable and ongoing business which had operated for at least a month and had a minimum 30% decline in revenue. He said he would use the grant for business expenses only.

Between February and March 2022, he applied for 3 CSPs of $4,400 each and confirmed he met all the criteria for receiving the payments.

Hector also applied for 2 SBCS loans, confirmed he met the criteria and would only use the money for core operating costs.

During interviews he told IR he couldn’t remember how he had used the COVID relief money he received and said he didn’t keep records.

IR started auditing Hector in 2022 and repeatedly asked him for information about his income tax and GST returns, but none was ever provided. However, an analysis of Hector’s bank accounts showed he “invented” his income and expenses. Both income and expenses were overstated, causing significant tax discrepancies.

Hector tried to get a total of $196,453.36 from his false COVID relief applications and GST and income tax returns. He received $53,400.00, mostly from COVID relief payments, which has not been repaid.

The offending was repetitive and premeditated and amounts to theft from the community.

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