Real estate identity Daniel Jocumsen granted bail on
fraud charge
The Courier-Mail
By: Kate McKenna
10 August 2016
THE former director of a failed real estate company has won a bid for
bail over an alleged $750,000 fraud.
Daniel Clement Francis Jocumsen, 44, made no comment to waiting media
after fronting the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday on charges
including fraud.
He was former director of Jocumsen Body Corporate Pty Ltd which was
placed in liquidation in October.
Police will allege he removed large amounts of money from various
accounts and maintained the money had not been taken well after the
accounts were closed.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Mark Gorton said bail was opposed, arguing
Jocumsen had “tenuous” links to the community and was considered a
flight risk.
But defence lawyer Nick Hanly said the father-of-two had been aware of
a potential investigation as early as March, yet “hadn’t made any
attempts” to leave Brisbane permanently since then.
He said Jocumsen made “partial admissions” to police about the amount
of money in question.
“He denies it was fraudulently obtained and made admissions that there
were discrepenices in the order of $750, 000,” he said.
The court heard Jocumsen was currently unemployed and intended to apply
for Centrelink benefits.
“He’s currently going through, obviously, a tough period in relation to
what he accepts is the winding down, and the end, of his business which
was successful at one point,” Mr Hanly.
Magistrate Bronwyn Springer granted him bail subject to conditions that
he reside at Teneriffe, report to police, surrender his passport and
not travel overseas.
“Don’t bother trying to leave the country,” she told him.
The matter was adjourned to August 22.
Federal Court searches reveal his empire is collapsing with the
Australian Taxation Office applying to the court to wind up Mr
Jocumsen’s company, Jocumsen Property Group, for non-payment of a tax
debt.
It claimed JPG was insolvent.
That case returns to court for hearing on September 2.
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QLD Strata Manager’s Alleged $750,000 Fraud
LookUpStrata
by Tyrone Shandiman, Strata Insurance Solutions
04 October 2016
Strata insurers are now starting to receive embezzlement claims,
following a recent case where a director of a strata management company
allegedly misappropriated funds of up to $750,000 from various bodies
corporate.
Most strata insurance policies will provide cover for fidelity
breaches, including embezzlement and misappropriation. Fidelity is
designed to cover both the actual losses as well as the costs
associated with preparing a claim.
The director has appeared in court on charges including fraud. It is
alleged the director removed funds from various clients’ accounts and,
even after these accounts had been closed, still maintained the money
had not been taken.
The alleged fraud highlights the added risks with not dealing directly
with a licenced insurance broker or adviser when placing strata
insurance.
Licenced insurance brokers and advisers are closely regulated by the
Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA) and by the Australian
Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
On the other hand, Queensland’s strata managers are not subject to
these, or even similar, statutory controls.
The Chairperson of one of the properties now making a claim for ‘breach
of fidelity’ by the strata manager has told Strata Insurance Solutions:
“The unlicensed and poorly regulated
environment of strata management in Queensland is atrocious. No
training or qualifications, no licence, no licence fees and hence no
statutory indemnity fund to protect victims of strata management
dishonesty.”
Where would the owners be, for example, if their strata manager was to
arrange and pay for their strata insurance policy out of the owners’
funds, then cancel the policy and pocket the refunded premium? The
owners could find themselves in a very precarious situation.
Even when misconduct is detected, there is no regulatory authority
which can step in and ensure restitution of any losses caused by the
strata manager’s misconduct. In the absence of this regulatory
authority, the strata manager “may be able to select his own liquidator
and then improperly control the documents, reports, and records
provided by his firm to the liquidator. This would mean that, even when
the fraud is known, neither the liquidator nor the QLD Police Fraud
Squad may have full and proper access to all documents and records.”
Bodies corporate who suspect they may have been defrauded should
contact their insurer immediately, and lodge a notification. If the
policy has been arranged by their strata manager, the body corporate
should contact the insurer directly.
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