Ex-CEO used position for personal advantage and provided false information to conceal actions: court
The former director and CEO of Bananacoast Community Credit Union (BCU) has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after being convicted of four dishonesty offences.
The charges against Lyndon Allen Kingston stem from actions that he took between December 2015 and August 2017, including:
Brisbane District Court Judge Carl Heaton KC sentenced Kingston to nine months' imprisonment for count one, 18 months' imprisonment for count two, and six-month concurrent sentences for counts five and six.
"You were in a position of trust which you knew, and you exploited and … denied the board the opportunity to ensure good governance, transparency, and integrity," Heaton said in sentencing Kingston.
Kingston will be eligible for release after serving six months, provided he meets the conditions of a $1,000 recognisance, with the requirement to remain of good behaviour for the remainder of his sentence.
The charges against Kingston were investigated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), with the case later prosecuted by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP).
"Kingston betrayed his position by dishonestly using his role to gain an advantage for himself, then attempting to conceal his wrongdoing," said Joe Longo, chair of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, in a statement.
Two additional charges, related to Kingston's dishonesty as a director of BCU, were dropped by the CDPP following the jury's failure to reach a unanimous verdict. Those charges concerned counts three and four, which were discontinued at the hearing.
At the time of the offences, BCU was a credit union based in Coffs Harbour. The institution has since merged with Police and Nurses Limited, a community-owned bank based in Western Australia, and is now a division of that bank.
