Dwayne Antojado, 29, of Shepparton, pleaded guilty in Shepparton Magistrates’ Court to three counts of dishonestly falsifying documents for accounting purposes and two counts of obtaining property by deception.
Prosecutor Leading Senior Constable Braden Wright said while Antojado was working at Gouge Linen and Garment Services in Mooroopna in March 2022, he altered the BSB and account numbers on tax invoices for three purchases before submitting them to his employer.
The three purchases were for $2664.75, $1946 and $7465.94.
Two of the alterations saw $9411.94 transferred into his account.
Gouge discovered the other alteration, for $2664.75, and contacted police before the money went into Antojado’s account.
Antojado’s defence barrister Jack Cleveland said his client’s offending was during a “very confined time frame”, and there had been significant delay given the offending happened about three years ago.
Mr Cleveland also said Antojado had a “seismic turnaround of personal circumstances”, and had taken significant steps to rehabilitate himself.
He told the court Antojado’s offending was related to isolation and depression, and he had repaid Gouge in a “quick turnaround”.
The court heard Antojado had received a scholarship to study a PhD in law through his lived experience as a past offender.
Magistrate Olivia Trumble said the offending was a “significant breach of trust” and “somewhat unsophisticated” given Antojado was an employee, and on county court bail at the time of offending.
However, she acknowledged the money was “quickly repaid”, and she said it was good he was using his previous experiences to educate others and himself.
Antojado was fined $5000.
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