Reho Travel rort: Enza Testa stole $100k to fund meth, gambling addiction
A Greenvale mother rorted her travel agent boss to sustain her double-life as a meth and gambling addict. But the dodgy bookkeeper avoided jail time despite the “gross breach of trust”. Here’s why.
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A degenerate bookkeeper fleeced her travel agent boss to fund a depraved lifestyle of meth and gambling, a court has heard.
Enza Testa, from Greenvale, was the financial controller and a “trusted employee” of corporate travel heavyweight Reho Travel when her deceit began in October, 2015.
Testa used her position to swindle $100,000 through 74 dodgy transactions masked as false invoices to several of the company’s corporate clients.
She funnelled the false payments – which ranged from $300-$5500 – to accounts held by a “friend or associate”.
Testa, a 25-year company veteran, used her cunning to disguise the transfers as “legitimate business expenditures”.
But her skulduggery came unstuck in October, 2017 after Reho chief executive Karsten Horne received a tip-off.
At first Mr Horne “disbelieved” the accusation, but reported Testa to police after his investigation uncovered the rort.
Testa called in sick to her yearly appraisal the next day so Mr Horne sacked her via text.
The mother of three gave a “no comment” interview to police but later confessed.
Testa, 50, was sentenced in the County Court on December 19 to a three-year community corrections order after pleading guilty to a rolled up charge of obtaining a financial advantage by deception.
Judge Rosemary Carlin said Testa – who began thieving three months after Reho took over the company – had committed a “gross breach of trust”.
“It may be assumed the new owners relied heavily on you as an experienced, long-term employee,” she said.
“Instead of assisting them in their new venture you embarked on your own venture of deceit which only ceased when your activity was detected.”
In his victim impact statement, Mr Horne said the company had felt a “sense of betrayal”
He said the company put in an “enormous amount” of work to “reconstruct and rectify” accounts.
Mr Horne said Reho repaid clients but those relationships had “suffered”.
Several of Testa’s close friends at Reho claimed they felt “under suspicion” after the crime was exposed.
Testa claimed she gambled as a “relief from her heavy domestic responsibilities” but soon turned to meth.
She said she would go to gambling venues to obtain meth because the drug had “took over her life”.
Testa claimed she was using meth “2-3 times a week” at a cost of “$300-$400”.
Judge Carlin said Testa’s drug use “did not amount to a raging addiction” and questioned where the balance of the stolen cash went.
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She said Testa became “enriched” because her regular income was “freed up” to cover living expenses.
Judge Carlin took into account Testa’s early guilty plea, low risk of reoffending and zero priors when sentencing.
Testa was also ordered to perform 350 hours of unpaid community work and undertake drug rehab.