Craig Robert Sainsbury, 50, jailed for fraud over bushfires, Covid-19 and floods recovery grants

A serial North Coast fraudster who rorted bushfire, Covid pandemic and flood hardship grants has been locked up. Here’s what happened.

The Black Summer bushfires of 2019-2020 burnt over 5.52 million hectares, destroying 2,476 homes and damaged more than 1000 others. Tragically, 26 people were killed, including three NSW RFS fireys and three international firefighting crew. Picture: Supplied by NSW Rural Fire Service.

A Lismore man enjoyed his last day of freedom after rorting almost $90,000 in disaster recovery grants in what a magistrate described as “reprehensible behaviour that deprived the community”.

Craig Robert Sainsbury, 50, was sentenced at Lismore Local Court on Monday.

He pleaded guilty to a stack of fraud charges after he scammed and attempted to fraudulently claim recovery grants for bushfires, the Covid-19 pandemic and Northern Rivers floods.

Sainsbury made 25 applications for various government grants to the value of $186,690 between August 2019 and April 2021, the court was told.

He claimed small business bushfire disaster grants for tens of thousands of dollars between February and December 2020 under Orange Motors Pty Ltd – a company that was sold by Sainsbury in 2013 and has been in liquidation since 2015.

Residents look on as flames burn through bush and destroy their communities. Picture: Brett Hemmings.

Sainsbury used multiple addresses for fraudulent claims in Lismore, Orange, Bora Ridge, Bungawalbin and Coraki.

Police inquiries later revealed the owners and occupants of addresses had no idea who Sainsbury was, or anything about his offending.

Magistrate Michael Dakin said the bushfire grants primarily used an “honesty system” and Sainsbury “clearly took advantage” of the lack of verification the process required.

Eight year-old Jarrod McInnes walks next to the remains of a house that his family was about to buy and was destroyed by the Black Summer bushfires in Rappville, NSW, Thursday, October 10, 2019. Picture: Dan Peled.

A home in Kiah NSW, that was destroyed in the Black Summer bushfires in the early hours of 4 January 2020. Picture by Sean Davey.

The offences were relatively “easy to commit” and “difficult to detect”, he told the court.

Mr Dakin said Sainsbury’s offending was made worse by the fact the limited pool of funds available to genuine fire victims was drained by his fraud.

But Sainsbury wasn’t content with just depriving bushfire victims. The serial fraudster’s success rorting bushfire grants emboldened him.

In June and July 2020, Sainsbury started scamming thousands in Covid-19 pandemic business hardship grants.

Sainsbury started scamming thousands in Covid-19 pandemic business hardship grants.

Using various business names, he claimed more than $10,000 into September 2021 – including the JobSaver grant – claiming money for business expenses and wages that were never paid.

In April 2021, Sainsbury tried to take $14,000 in flood recovery grants for a Subaru Outback wagon he claimed was written off at his Lismore “microbusiness” – his house and ABN set up for the purpose of claiming support grants.

Flood waters devastated Lismore. Picture: SES/AFP.

At this point, Sainsbury had been flagged for potential fraud and the grant application was refused.

A total of $88,500 was paid out by Services NSW before Sainsbury was flagged.

After extensive audits and investigations, Sainsbury was arrested on July 1, 2022 and charged.

Sainsbury wrote an apology letter to the court: “I know how it feels to have lost everything.”

Piles of flood-damaged goods lining a main street on March 04, 2022 in central Lismore. Picture: Dan Peled.

He claimed looking back on his offending made him “physically ill” and he was struggling with alcohol abuse at the time.

Sainsbury claimed he was “intoxicated” while offending, but Mr Dakin said his frauds took planning and were not impulsive.

Mr Dakin said he had “some doubt” regarding Sainsbury’s remorse and described the offending as “reprehensible behaviour that deprived the community”.

Sainsbury was jailed for 30 months, 16-months non-parole, for 10 counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception 15 counts of publishing false misleading material to obtain advantage one count of making a false document to obtain financial advantage and one count of possessing an unauthorised firearm.

He will be released from prison on parole on December 13, 2024.

Sainsbury has been ordered to pay $88,500 in compensation to Services NSW.

His wife wept and quickly left the courtroom as he was taken into custody.