Aussie school manager stole a million dollars

Reports in the South Australian media focussed on the Elizabeth Magistrates Court this week, where a 34-year-old former business manager of a private school pleaded guilty to charges that he fraudulently misappropriated A$1 million between 2012 and 2016.

Travis Saegenschnitter allegedly falsified invoices and financial reports to cover up his thefts from the St Jakobi Lutheran a school in the Barossa Valley. He said his criminal behaviour was triggered by an online gambling addiction.

Saegenschnitter’s thefts were uncovered after he was discharged for poor performance and his replacement picked up on inconsistencies in the accounts.

In court Saegenschnitter expressed deep remorse and acknowledged that he had betrayed the school’s trust in him. “I got caught up in a cycle of perpetuated addictions… in my mind I couldn’t break the cycle,” he said. “I hated myself for what I was doing.”

However the prosecutor adduced evidence of a systematic attempt to cover up deliberate and continued theft of funds in the accused’s care and trust, and suggested that a period of imprisonment would be appropriate.

A legal representative for Saegenschnitter told the court his client also suffered from a drug addiction but was committed to turning his life around and repaying some of the stolen funds.

The Court will consider the matter and hand down its sentence at a later date.