A former president of Little Athletics Tasmania won’t go to jail despite stealing over $10,000 from the organisation’s fundraising account.
Rhonda Ruth O’Sign, 63, had been involved with the volunteer group for nearly 30 years, starting as a publicity officer and later becoming president for a decade – a position she held while the thefts occurred between April 2016 and the end of 2018.
She admitted guilt to two counts of fraud, fraud as a clerk or servant, as well as stealing and computer-related fraud.
The court learned that O’Sign misused a credit card to take money from the nonprofit’s fundraising account 22 times, spending the stolen cash on toys, sports tickets and cosmetics.
In 2018, O’Sign withdrew over $2,000 from the account to purchase a food processor for her daughter-in-law and another $2,000 for a family member, which she claimed was a ‘raffle prize’.
O’Sign’s fraudulent activities came to light after she falsified board minutes in early 2019 to persuade a bank to close the account and establish a new one, in the hope of concealing old statements.
When questioned by a board member in February 2019 about the transactions in the account, she confessed to inappropriately using the credit card and resigned from her position the following day.
Justice Alan Blow sentenced O’Sign to three months of imprisonment, a sentence that was fully suspended on the condition that she avoids committing any offence punishable by prison in the next two years.
He also ordered her to undertake 140 hours of community service within the next 18 months.
