Former retail operations manager at Lake Taupō Hospice Trust, Mark Wisniewski, 64, has admitted a charge of causing loss by deception of over $1,000 from his former employers.
Wisniewski appeared in the Taupō District Court on Wednesday and as indicated in a preliminary hearing on March 5, entered a guilty plea through his lawyer Mark Kirkeby.
However just how much he took over six years of offending is unknown – his own estimates put it at just over $62,000.
Under section 240 of the Crimes Act 1961 the offence carries a maximum prison sentence not exceeding seven years.
The court heard that Wisniewski was employed by Lake Taupō Hospice Trust for approximately eight years, spanning the end of August 2016 through to October 2024.
The registered charity funds its free services including clinical care, family support, personal care, bereavement support and palliative care, through money from Te Whatu Ora (30 per cent) with the remaining 70 per cent raised via the Taupō and Tūrangi Hospice Shops, donations, bequests and fundraisers.
It was the money earned at the Taupō second hand shop that Wisniewski began dipping his hands into a couple of years after starting at the store.
In reading out the summary of facts Police Prosecutor Sergeant Martin McGahey said Wisniewski would be handed the unsealed cash takings from staff members at the end of the day and was responsible for banking those funds.
“The defendant has removed cash from the unsealed cash takings for his personal benefit… (He) would cut off the bottom portions of the till register summaries, rewrite the deposit slip and cash sheet reconciliation, then dispose of the original document produced by the staff.”
Wisniewski’s actions meant there was no way of knowing the exact amount, or the frequency money was taken over the eight years he was employed by the Trust.
However, in admitting his theft, Wisniewski told police he started removing funds from the banking in 2018, taking $100 a week in 2018, increasing this to $150 a week in 2019 and 2020 and $250 a week for the remainder of the time that he worked at Hospice.
The figures he provided were an approximation as he didn’t keep any record of the actual amount taken.
Prior to the summary of facts being read out, Kirkeby said Wisniewski would be willing to attend restorative justice if available, which Judge Bergseng said he would note down.
“But whether the victims choose to attend is going to be for them.”
Sergeant McGahey’s “They won’t want to, I know that…” was followed by Kirkeby relaying an offer from Wisniewski to repay $62,600 in reparation to the insurance company that had forwarded that amount to Hospice for its loss.
“The defendant is able to immediately pay that reparation, it’s something he is wanting to do,” said Kirkeby.
Sergeant McGahey replied that he would enable it to happen prior to sentencing.
Judge Bergseng further remanded Wisniewski on bail to appear for sentencing on July 7 at 10am at the Taupō District Court. Until then he was also to report to the Taupō Police Station as directed by his probation officer.
“The payment of reparation, if paid in full, will certainly make a difference to sentencing,” said the judge.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Mark was age 54.
