A Dunedin Ponzi operator has been sentenced to eight years and ten months’ imprisonment, with a minimum non-parole period of five years and four months.
Barry Edward Kloogh (57) who ran a Ponzi scheme for more than 20 years was sentenced today in the Dunedin District Court. He had previously admitted to charges of ‘False accounting’, ‘False statement by promoters’, ‘Theft by person in special relationship’, ‘Obtaining by deception’ and ‘Forgery’ brought by the Serious Fraud Office.
Mr Kloogh provided financial advisory services through several companies of which he was the sole director and shareholder, including Financial Planning Limited (which traded as Breathe Financial), Breathe Financial Limited and Impact Enterprises Limited. He had approximately 2000 active clients in May 2019.
The Director of the SFO, Julie Read, said, “Mr Kloogh exploited the trust and goodwill of his clients to misappropriate at least $15.7 million. His selfish and criminal actions have destroyed people’s retirement plans and jeopardised their financial wellbeing. Such offending erodes trust in our financial system. The prosecution of such matters is a priority for the SFO.”
The Financial Markets Authority referred the matter to the SFO and assisted the agency in its investigation.
