These career-driven South Australians found themselves in trouble with the law
From an award-winning travel agent landing 12 years’ jail to business owners’ devious side hustles, these once successful career people are now convicted criminals.
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For some it was drugs that caused their lives to spiral out of control, for others their protracted deception was eventually exposed.
But these criminals have one thing in common – they were all excelling in their careers before they came undone.
From successful business owners defrauding major clients to supermarket managers with a side hustle, these are the career driven people who have recently faced South Australian courts.
Kiera Scott
A once successful career woman involved herself in a commercial enterprise selling illicit drugs to cover her own mounting debts.
Kiera Lee Scott, 31, was jailed in the Adelaide District Court after a methamphetamine addiction led to her downward spiral.
The court heard Scott and her co-accused attempted to enter the Mobilong Prison at Murray Bridge on February 29, 2020.
“When you were doing so, you were screened by a drug detection dog. The dog detected drugs on both of you,” Judge Paul Slattery said during sentencing.
The former award-winning travel agent’s car was searched and two balloons were seized, as well as methamphetamine, a homemade taser and an axe.
“These balloons contained 20 buprenorphine strips and 25 naloxone strips,” Judge Slattery said.
Police attended Scott’s Paralowie house on June 6, 2020.
They found 28 buprenorphine strips, methamphetamine, $6500 cash and bank cards and official documents in the names of other people.
“Police also located 789g of 1,4-butanediol in a jerry can outside of the house,” Judge Slattery said.
Scott pleaded guilty to multiple counts of drug trafficking.
The court heard Scott started a relationship with a man who was a heavy methamphetamine user.
Adding on Scott’s previous jail term, Judge Slattery sentenced her to 11 years in jail, with a non-parole period of six years and two months.
The sentence was backdated to October 30, 2020.
Nathan Walker
A former personal trainer busted with a significant amount of cocaine and steroids became a prolific drug user after his life spiralled out of control.
Nathan Stephen Walker, 33, risks being deported after being handed a suspended sentence for trafficking cocaine to fuel his “all-consuming addiction”.
The Adelaide District Court heard police searched Walker’s Brighton house on December 4, 2020.
They found three resealable bags in a shoebox, with a total of 34g of cocaine.
The estimated value was between $9000-$15,000.
Police also found testosterone, steroids, scales and more resealable bags.
Walker, of Brighton, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and possessing a prescribed drug.
Judge Burnett sentenced Walker to two years and three months jail, with a non-parole period of 13 months.
It was suspended on a two-year $500 good behaviour bond, with supervision for 12 months, due to Walker’s remorse and good prospects of rehabilitation.
Bianca Bais
A mother-of-two who was once on a successful career path had her life spiral out of control after she discovered an illegal side hustle.
Bianca Dorothea Bais, 49, claimed her cash was pokies winnings and plastic bags were for jewellery in attempts to prove her innocence after police uncovered her drug-dealing business.
The Adelaide District Court heard Bais sold methamphetamine to an undercover police officer four times between April and August, 2018.
Bais sold the undercover officer 0.2g, 0.16g, 0.18g and 0.98g of methamphetamine.
The officer attended Bais’ address on two more occasions to buy drugs but Bais told her she was no longer selling because the risk was too high.
Police arrested Bais in October, 2018, and during a search of her house they found $1980, plastic resealable bags and drug equipment.
Bais, of Christies Downs, pleaded guilty to four counts of drug trafficking.
The court heard Bais had worked in the real estate industry for many years and eventually opened her own franchise.
Judge Geraldine Davison sentenced Bais to four years, with a non-parole period of two years and two months.
The sentence was backdated to December 21.
Eisa Khayami and Yulia Vaks
Two weed growers having financial struggles were hoping to dive into the world of criminal activity and “easy money” by selling drugs, a court has heard.
Eisa Abdoinabi Khayami, 40, and Yulia Vaks, 36, were growing a commercial amount of marijuana in their house in exchange for free rent.
The Adelaide District Court heard police located 24 marijuana cuttings in a growing room at a Dernancourt address in May, 2018.
Police also found eight “relatively mature” plants being grown hydroponically in another room.
“I’m satisfied the intention of the cultivation was to grow cannabis to be sold for – at the very least – $10,000,” Judge Ian Press said during sentencing.
Khayami was then placed under surveillance by police.
Police then attended the Dernancourt address again in February, 2019 and found eight marijuana plants growing hydroponically.
Khayami, of Semaphore, was found guilty at trial of cultivating a commercial quantity of plants for sale, while Vaks, of Woodville, pleaded guilty to the same charge.
Vaks runs a business providing cosmetic and massage services, while Khayami owns a jewellery business.
Judge Press sentenced Vaks to one year and two months jail, with a non-parole period of eight months.
He suspended the sentence on an 18-month, $100 good behaviour bond, with supervision.
Khayami was sentenced to three years jail, with a non-parole period of one year and nine months.
Judge Press ordered the sentence be served on home detention.
Malcolm Simpson
Adelaide 36ers ex-chairman Malcolm Simpson had no money in the bank when he deceived Drakes Supermarkets into paying him for services he couldn’t provide.
Simpson, 72, walked free from the Adelaide District Court, after he defrauded $207,250 to try to keep his own business afloat.
Simpson’s initially successful company Champion Travel collapsed with debts of almost $1.6m in 2018.
The travel agency had a longstanding relationship with Drakes Supermarkets in organising travel and accommodation for their annual conference.
“In 2017 Champion Travel was engaged to assist in organising the Drakes’ 2018 conference,” Judge Joanne Tracey said during sentencing.
“At the time you were operating bank accounts which were either in debit or which held no funds.”
The court heard Simpson asked Drakes for payments for the conference but instead used the money to keep his business afloat.
“The total amount of money transferred by way of the deception was $207,250,” Judge Tracey said.
Simpson, of Hindmarsh Island, had previously pleaded guilty to five counts of deception.
Judge Joanne Tracey sentenced Simpson to three years and three months jail, with a two-year non-parole period.
The sentence was suspended on a three-year good behaviour bond of $1000.
Matthew Greco
The stepbrother of a Married At First Sight star who dealt methamphetamine to his close friends to pay for his own drug addiction – was jailed for nearly three years.
Matthew Raymond Greco, 33, was sentenced in the District Court for trafficking the “highly addictive drug”.
Greco turned to meth to cope with working long hours at an Adelaide Central Market fruit and vegetable stall – he had taken on additional responsibilities after his stepfather had a stroke and his stepbrother found fame on the smash hit TV reality show.
Judge Geraldine Davison told the court that police searched Greco’s Colonel Light Gardens home on July 30, 2019.
“In your bedroom they located a black Puma bag between pillows of the bed – inside the bag there were three plastic resealable bags, containing a total of 12.92g of methamphetamine,” she said.
Police also found 3.77g of GHB, also known as fantasy, resealable bags, electronic scales and an ice pipe.
Greco had previously pleaded guilty to drug trafficking.
The court heard Greco had a dream to take over the fruit and vegetable business from his stepfather but the shop ended up being sold.
Judge Davison sentenced Greco to two years, nine months and 19 days jail, with a non-parole period of 16 months.
Glenda Burgess
An accounts manager and “trusted employee” at one of Adelaide’s biggest companies was jailed for deceiving her employer out of millions of dollars.
Glenda Ivy Burgess, 63, of Hillbank was found guilty, by a jury’s majority verdict, of nine counts of aggravated deception and nine aggravated counts of dishonest dealing with documents.
The 18 offences occurred between August 2009 and September 2017, while she was an account manager and “trusted employee” at Adelaide Brighton Cement.
District Court Judge Adam Kimber labelled her offending “considered and calculated”.
“This was a protracted, systematic course of dishonesty engaged in over many years. It effectively caused your employer not to invoice a customer for about $12m and allowed that money not to be paid.
He said Burgess’ offending related to making false entries into the company’s ledger to favour a specific customer, Concrete Supply.
“That company received about $32 million worth of product but paid only about $20m,” he said.
She also created a “false, misleading” debtors report for senior executives at the company to “hide the true amount of money owed” by Concrete Supply.
Burgess was jailed for seven years, with a non-parole period of four years and three months.
Jacqueline Sharp
A supermarket manager dodged jail a second time after she was caught dealing meth only six months after being sentenced for the same offence.
Jacqueline Lee Sharp, 32, finally received the wake up call she needed and is now on the path to rehabilitation, a court has heard.
The Adelaide District Court heard police stopped a car that Sharp was a passenger in on January 29 at Whyalla Stuart.
Sharp, who was found with an ice pipe, threw her shoes on the ground after she got out of the car.
“Inside a sock within one of the shoes they found a container with 7.05g of methamphetamine in it,” Judge Gordon Barrett said during sentencing.
Police also found $2810 in her purse, with messages on Sharp’s phone revealing regular drug dealing sales.
Judge Barrett sentenced Sharp to four years and one month jail, with a non-parole period of two years and four months.
It was suspended on a three-year $1000 good behaviour bond, with supervision.
Bob Harrap
Corrupt ex-magistrate Bob Harrap’s time behind bars was increased on appeal for putting his own self-interest ahead of his judicial oath and the wellbeing of the women in his life.
The Court of Criminal Appeal increased Harrap’s penalty for one of his crimes, but decreased his punishment for two others.
Harrap, 61, pleaded guilty to corruption offences over his attempts to avoid demerits for speeding in his government-issued car.
He involved two women, his former clerk, Melanie Jane Freeman, and his SA Police prosecutor girlfriend, Abigail Foulkes, in those offences via long-term grooming and by exploiting his emotional ties with them.
Harrap also pleaded guilty to conspiring to abuse public office by improperly assisting lawyer Catherine Jayne Moyse with a speeding case that came before him for decision.
In December, 2020, Harrap was jailed for 18 months, with a 12-month non-parole period, while Moyse was spared a conviction and resumed her legal career.
Prosecutors challenged both outcomes as “inadequate”, while Harrap’s counsel filed an appeal of their own insisting his penalty was “manifestly excessive”.
Chief Justice Chris Kourakis said he would refuse the prosecution’s appeal on the demerits offences, but allow Harrap’s challenge to those same penalties.
While he would reduce those penalties to six and nine months respectively, he would grant the prosecution’s appeal on the conspiracy with Moyse and increase that term to 15 months.
That resulted in a final sentence of 21 months for Harrap, with a 12-month non-parole period backdated to December, 2020, when his bail was revoked.
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