Brisbane stockbroker jailed for 11 years after defrauding clients

A Brisbane stockbroker who engaged in “breathtaking dishonesty” to defraud his clients of millions in stocks has been jailed for more than 10 years.

Roderick George Halligan has been jailed for 11 years.

A Brisbane stockbroker who fraudulently fleeced his clients of millions of dollars has been sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment over the “callous manipulation and deception”.

Roderick George Halligan was described as a “master manipulator to the end” who engaged in “breathtaking dishonesty” to defraud clients who had entrusted him with their stock portfolios.

Crown prosecutor Chris Cook on Wednesday told the Brisbane District Court that between July 2008 and October 2020, Halligan had successfully defrauded two female clients of $1.2 million of stocks.

He attempted to defraud a third client of almost half a million dollars but failed.

The loss caused to the clients due to the increased prices of the shares is estimated to be far greater, with projections putting just one victim’s losses at up to $2.52 million.

Halligan, 59, pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud and one of attempted fraud.

Mr Cook said Halligan had repaid some of the money he had fraudulently obtained but his victims were still owed significant amounts of money.

The court heard Halligan went to extreme lengths to hide his crimes, including forging dividend statements and creating fake contracts, all while reassuring his victims their stocks were safe.

When Halligan’s deceit was eventually discovered in 2020, he told one of his victims: “I thought this would come out one day but I didn’t think it would take this long”.

When a financial expert contacted Halligan about the discrepancy, Halligan first denied wrongdoing before admitting he had stolen shares from his clients.

After being caught, he paid back $400,000 to one client between October and December 2020 but still owes a significant amount.

Mr Cook said the repayment was in contrast to Halligan’s claims that he always intended to pay the money back.

“It seemed that he had significant collateral enough to pay back the funds before he was ultimately discovered,” he said.

Halligan pleaded for the crime not to be reported to police, saying his “career, marriage and reputation” were on the line.

“In the crown’s submission your honour these crimes were motivated by Mr Halligan’s greed,” Mr Cook said.

“The case involved breathtaking dishonesty and he was a master manipulator to the end.

“The crimes were planned, there was trust built and there was callous manipulation and deception which was ongoing. These were appalling breaches of the trust that he held.”

Mr Cook described Halligan’s attempts to blame his conduct on the 2008 global financial crisis as a “cop out”, saying the offending had continued for years after that.

Defence barrister Daniel Caruana said in Halligan’s favour were his attempts to pay restitution to his victims, his “good chances” of rehabilitation.

He said the financial crisis had been the “catalyst” for Halligan’s offending and he had been attempting to “dig himself out of a hole”.

“Ultimately your honour he for a long period of time was a very successful trader that includes both for his clients and in his personal capacity trading for himself,” Mr Caruana said.

“That went south very quickly during the global financial crisis.”

The court heard Halligan had been candid in admissions that he lived a “comfortable and enviable lifestyle”.

“There can be no doubt in my submission that he acknowledges wrongdoing, accepts wrongdoing, understands what he did was wrong, and is remorseful for it,” Mr Caruana said.

Judge Brad Farr SC noted Halligan had lost his marriage, career and home as a result of crimes but said his victims had also suffered significant losses, with at least one victim now suffering financial hardship.

“You embarked on this very length period of dishonest conduct with your eyes wide open,” Judge Farr said.

“It involved a healthy degree of sophistication and you attempting to cover your tracks on numerous occasions.”

Halligan was sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment. He will be eligible for parole on September 23 2026.