Leigh O’Neill to spend 20 months behind bars after pleading guilty to major school fraud

An Atwood crook bled two taxpayer-funded schools dry to fund his gambling addiction, using the $765,000 to bet on horses, greyhounds and online apps.

Leigh O'Neill was jailed for swindling $765,000 from two public schools to fund his gambling addiction.

A Melbourne con artist and “chronic gambler” who stole almost $765,000 from two public schools including a specialist institute for kids with Autism sobbed as he was jailed for at least 20 months.

Leigh O’Neill, 43, pleaded guilty in the County Court on Wednesday to two counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception after he was caught siphoning thousands of dollars from two public schools.

O’Neill — who was crying in the docks as Judge Gavan Meredith read out his sentence — was originally charged with a 199 offences where he swindled a combined $764,770.97 from Craigieburn Secondary College and Jacana School for Autism between November 2019 and July 2024 on 95 occasions.

O’Neill wept in the docks on Wednesday as Judge Gavan Meredith read out his sentence.

The court heard O’Neill had been working as the accounts payable manager at Craigieburn Secondary College from 2019 when he began his offending, duplicating invoices from creditors and inputting his own bank details to pay himself, before paying the creditors back at a later date so as not to arouse suspicion.

In October last year, a court heard his single highest transaction had been $18,593 in August 2021.

The court heard O’Neill had developed a serious gambling addiction in his adult years, where he had previously racked up a $70,000 credit card debt in 2012, which led him to declare himself bankrupt.

Described as a “chronic gambler”, O’Neill admitted to betting daily on horses, harness racing and greyhound racing through online betting apps at the time of his offending.

The court heard he had continued stealing the taxpayer-funded cash to “portray outwardly that he was someone living a successful life”.

O’Neill used to funds to “portray outwardly that he was someone living a successful life”, the court heard.

In a victim impact statement from a colleague at Craigieburn Secondary College, the court heard O’Neill’s offending had left the business manager with feelings of “anxiety and guilt”.

In sentencing, Judge Meredith said O’Neill’s offending was an “egregious breach of trust” where he “abused his trusted position”.

He said the deceptions had a “degree of sophistication” and were “protracted in nature”.

Judge Meredith said he accepted character references from O’Neill’s friends and family, believing him to be “genuinely remorseful”.

O’Neill wept as he was sentenced to three years behind bars with a 20 month non-parole period.