Ms Jan Redfern, Executive Director of Enforcement at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), today noted that, in a majority decision, the South Australian Court of Criminal Appeal had dismissed an appeal against the sentence of Mr Hamish Boyd McLachlan of Adelaide.

Mr McLachlan was sentenced to nine years jail, with a non-parole period of five years, after being found guilty on 55 charges laid following an investigation by ASIC and the South Australia Police Major Fraud Section. This jail sentence will stand.

‘Today’s decision sends a strong message that neither ASIC nor the community generally will tolerate securities dealers who act dishonestly and break the law for their personal gain’, Ms Redfern said.

Mr McLachlan, a former employee of Thompson Brindal Ltd, was convicted on 43 counts of causing exchange-traded options to be transferred from his personal account to the accounts of 30 RetireInvest clients. This diverted losses of $482,245.78 from his account to that of the RetireInvest clients.

Mr McLachlan was also convicted on 12 counts of causing transfers of a similar nature from three accounts of clients of Thompson Brindal Ltd, to accounts of RetireInvest clients. This diverted losses of $84,280.97.

The offences occurred between 10 April 1996 and 25 March 1997.

The charges were prosecuted by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions.