A person who gained a bravery award for rescuing an aged lady from her burning dwelling has admitted defrauding his employer of just about $500,000 {dollars}.
Nick Karagiannis, a 44-year-old father-of-three, has pleaded responsible to fees associated to manipulation of costs of trade-in automobiles at automobile seller Suttons.
It’s a marked fall from grace for the person who appeared at NSW Authorities Home alongside state Governor Margaret Beazley in 2021 to simply accept a Commendation for Courageous Conduct; the fourth-highest honour amongst Australia’s Bravery Decorations.
Karagiannis earned the award by serving to 72-year-old Trena Kerakoski escape her burning dwelling at Homebush in Sydney’s inside west in 2014.
Karagiannis was subsequently praised on-line for his actions and gave inspirational speeches about his charitable works to schoolchildren.
He advised The Greek Herald in 2021 he seen the burning home whereas returning to his office and raced to rescue the aged lady.
‘I knew the residents who lived there – there was the grandma, grandpa, daughter and granddaughter. I noticed the grandma seize a backyard hose and run again into the home in an try to put out the flames,’ he advised the publication.
‘So I ran in after her and shortly pulled her to security only one minute earlier than the roof of the home got here in.’
However now his function in scamming his former employer Suttons out of almost $500,000 has been revealed within the NSW District Court docket.
Nick Karagiannis, a 44-year-old father-of-three, appeared at NSW Authorities Home (pictured) alongside state Governor Margaret Beazley to simply accept a Commendation for Courageous Conduct, the fourth highest honour amongst Australia’s Bravery Decorations
As reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, whereas working as basic supervisor with Suttons Motor Group at Homebush, Karagiannis prompted a monetary drawback of $475,675 to the corporate between 2016 and 2019 when he started permitting prospects to pay for automobiles by way of his private checking account.
In agreed details tendered to the court docket, Karagiannis would safe new automobile gross sales by paying the next value to prospects for trade-ins on their used automobiles. He then tried to cover the losses by ‘juggling’ prospects’ cash and his personal funds to cowl the shortfall by his private account.
Whereas Karagiannis later reimbursed Suttons, he did not sustain with repayments for 3 years till the discrepancy was seen by the corporate.
A NSW Police investigation then discovered 114 registration numbers matching 179 deposits into Karagiannis’ private account, for a complete of about $2.5million.
Over the three years Karagiannis paid $2million to Suttons however nonetheless owed $475,675 when the observe was found.
The court docket heard an excerpt of a telephone interview from March 2019 the place the automobile seller’s managing director Craig Sutton requested Karagiannis who prospects had been paying.
He advised his boss that prospects had been transferring cash into his account or giving him cheques.
‘So I paid for different automobiles with it, so I have been juggling since July ’17,’ Karagiannis mentioned, assuring Mr Sutton the cash could be repaid on receipt of a mortgage.
The managing director advised him prospects have been beneath the false impression they have been paying the corporate’s account.
Karagiannis replied that ‘whether or not it was mine or yours, they did not actually care, they trusted me’.
Over three years Karagiannis (pictured) paid $2million to Suttons however nonetheless owed $475,675 when his ‘misleading’ observe was found. He made no monetary benefit from the observe
Agreed details tendered in court docket state that Karagiannis didn’t ‘have interaction within the scheme for his private enrichment’, however that he was misleading.
In a police interview he alleged the corporate’s accounts division knew of his actions, and mentioned that whereas he gained no monetary benefit from the observe, he did owe the excellent cash.
Karagiannis pleaded responsible to dishonestly acquiring a monetary benefit by deception. He will probably be sentenced in November.
