Fraud Melbourne bookkeeper Carolyn Kruger jailed for $3.8 million Triangle Waterquip theft

Almost $4m of hard-earned cash was drained from a hard working Mordialloc family business by their dodgy bookkeeper.

A crooked bookkeeper who stole almost $3.8 million from a family run Mordialloc water filter company has been jailed.

Carolyn Kruger, 63, was sentenced in the County Court on Thursday to a minimum four-year jail term after pleading guilty to multiple rolled-up theft charges.

Kruger fleeced more than $3,780,670 from her former employer Triangle Waterquip between January 2008 and February 2015.

The shonky bookkeeper diddled account records and funnelled her ill-gotten dough to her personal bank accounts and business accounts.

Kruger, of Bonbeach, was employed as a part-time bookkeeper at the Mordialloc company.

Her racket came unstuck after a Triangle Waterquip employee discovered “discrepancies” in February 2015.

The employee questioned Kruger but she told them to “not worry”.

Kruger later admitted thieving $3000 to meet an “urgent commitment”, the court heard.

Further investigation revealed the full extent of Kruger’s skulduggery.

Kruger was hauled in for a meeting with senior staff where she admitted stealing $80,000.

Triangle Waterquip fired Kruger on the spot.

Kruger later signed a deed where she agreed to sell properties to repay the cash.

The victim company also told Kruger if her “unauthorised transfers” totalled more than $1 million then it would dob her into the cops.

Family members who ran Triangle Waterquip told the court they were “adversely affected” by Kruger’s offending.

Kruger, who has repaid more than $580,000 after selling her home and business, was charged in March 2017.

The court heard Kruger was estranged from most of her family except her daughter.

Kruger submitted she suffered “mental health” issues at the time of the offending but Judge Helen Syme said there was no evidence to support the claim.

Kruger also claimed she gave some of her stolen money to family members to “please them”.

Judge Syme, who noted Kruger hadn’t seen family since 2007, said this explanation “simply does not make sense”.

The court heard Kruger, who declared bankruptcy in December 2015, also claimed to have injected cash into her own business ventures and gave some money to friends.

Judge Syme said there was “no explanation” where the bulk of the stolen cash ended up.

“There is no information before the court as to where the money went to after it was removed from Triangle Waterquip’s accounts … apart from going into accounts in Ms Kruger’s name,” Judge Syme said.

“(There has been) no information at all as to the disposal of that money … it cannot be said there was a pressing but benevolent need (to give money to others) elsewhere … she says she no longer has any funds.

“The prosecution investigation has not being able to uncover any funds either, I find this surprising … It would be most unfair, in my view, if the victims of all of these crimes had to pursue a civil judgment in order to take the first step to recoup moneys that has been taken from them if those moneys are never located.”

Kruger was jailed for a maximum five years and four months.

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