A woman has avoided jail after she "ripped off" money from a small school P and C and applied for fraudulent credit cards to pay legal fees.
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Karen Louise Webb, 50, of Auburn Street Goulburn, appeared before Goulburn Local Court on February 3.
Webb was convicted of six counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception, and five counts of publishing false and misleading material to obtain advantage.
In court, Magistrate Geraldine Beattie said Webb had transferred $3829.57 out of the Tirranna Public School P and C Association's bank account in six transactions between 2015 and August 2019.
She said Webb was in the "trusted position" of treasurer for the school group.
"The money was to assist the school get things for the kids and you ripped them off," she said.
Solicitor Rod Boyd said at the time of offence his client was under financial pressure in relation to legal costs. He said Webb had been before Goulburn District Court in August 2019 where she was convicted of defrauding $46,000 from NAB.
Mr Boyd said his client had also filed multiple fraudulent credit card applications between August 9 and 20 in 2019. He said the applications were not successful and his client had "ticked a box" for $100,000 or standard maximum amounts.
The magistrate said Webb had used the identity information of her manager and colleague at a Goulburn petrol station to make the false applications.
"She'd been caught for all those other fraud charges and knew it was wrong but she kept going," Magistrate Beattie said.
"You have seen fit to rip off the P and C and use the identity information of people you work with to defraud banks.
"You had been before the court many times and you still re-offended."
Mr Boyd urged the magistrate to consider an Intensive Corrections Order in lieu of imprisonment.
"[Webb] has responded well to community service and has been made peer supervisor," he said.
"She has made significant gains in the past couple of months and seems like a different person in my interactions with her."
Webb was convicted and sentenced to a 24-month Intensive Corrections Order with 300 hours of community service.
