Kellie Harrington: Mildura scoundrel stole $35K from Centrelink, ignores community work

A Mildura scoundrel who rorted Centrelink for $35,000 blatantly refused to do the community work she was ordered to do.

Mildura's Centrelink office.

A Mildura scoundrel who rorted Centrelink for $35,000 failed to do even one hour of court-ordered community work, a court has heard.

Kellie Kathleen Harrington, 42, pleaded guilty to breaching a community corrections order at Mildura Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

The court heard Harrington failed to declare her employment income to Centrelink 109 times between July 2009 and September 2013.

She was working as a shoe store sales assistant at the time and ended up being overpaid $35,463.92.

After pleading guilty to the offending in September 2016, Harrington was put on a community corrections order which she blatantly ignored.

A year later she was given a second chance to comply and ordered to do 150 hours of community work within 15 months.

But on Monday the court was told not a single hour of community work had been completed by Harrington.

Magistrate Michael Coghlan said Harrington had recorded “not one hour of work, no medical certificate”.

Harrington’s lawyer said she couldn’t explain why she’d failed to engage with the corrections process apart from being “totally distracted” by an illness to her father.

Mr Coghlan said sentencing was a “difficult exercise” because the original offending concluded eight years ago and there was a three-year delay in charges being laid over the corrections breach.

Harrington was not given a third chance at community work, with Mr Coghlan indicating he was considering either a fine or prison.

Mr Coghlan said the lack of reoffending over the past eight years aside from the breaches was a factor, as was Harrington’s current employment.

Harrington was convicted and fined $3000.

She was ordered to repay the Centrelink debt in 2016.

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