2 Sep 2013

Guilty plea by former finance company director

1:59 pm on 2 September 2013

A former director of a failed Gisborne finance company has pleaded guilty in the Gisborne High Court to nine counts of fraud laid by the Serious Fraud Office.

The SFO laid a number of criminal charges against the three directors of Rockforte Finance in January 2012, with investor losses estimated at just under $4 million.

One of the three, Colin Simpson, has pleaded guilty to charges of theft by person in special relationship, false accounting, obtaining by deception, and false statement by promoter.

He will be sentenced on 26 September, with the charges carrying maximum sentences of between seven and 10 years' imprisonment.

The two remaining defendants, Nigel O'Leary and John Gardner, will go on trial on 30 September.