Media Release

14 June 2013

Home Detention for commercial corruption

Former Commercial Property Manager, Christopher David Green (66) has been sentenced in the Auckland District Court today to five months’ home detention.

Mr Green’s offending occurred between 2003 and 2010 when he was responsible for ensuring the portfolio of premises that his employer occupied around New Zealand, were appropriately insured.

Mr Green’s employer was a client of Herbert Insurance Group (HIG) which acted as insurance broker for Mr Green’s employer.

Mr Green corruptly received secret commissions from HIG totalling approximately $220,000 for referring insurance business to HIG. His employer was consequently over charged by that sum. He retained approximately $142,000 of that amount and it is alleged that he returned the balance over charged to Mr Herbert (the principal of HIG) personally.

Mt Green’s offending was identified in the course of a wider investigation of Herbert Insurance Group. Mr Herbert faces additional charges arising out of that investigation and these are before the Court.

Mr Green pled guilty in February to eight charges laid by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) under Section 4 of the Secret Commissions Act.

Acting SFO Chief Executive, Simon McArley, says, “Offending of this nature adds to the cost of doing business in New Zealand and is a drain on our economy. SFO is focused on reducing the impact of economic crime on our economy and so will continue to prioritise dealing with bribery and corruption of this type.”

ENDS

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