A New Zealand water engineer has been sentenced after stealing over a million dollars to pay off gambling debts.
New Zealander Shyamal Sushil Shah has been charged with two years and two months’ imprisonment for one of the largest public sector thefts on record. Shah has now been convicted and sentenced for engaging in a 17-month scheme where he stole $1 million (NZD) from his employer, Auckland Council’s Watercare.
The motivation for the crime stemmed from Shah incurring a large debt with an underground, illegal poker house in Auckland. A self-confessed gambling addict, the water network engineer turned to theft to find the funds to pay his debts.
“There’s been a significant breach of trust,” Auckland District Court Judge Kate Davenport said on Tuesday, July 8, during sentencing of the 27-year-old. “The ramifications of what you’ve done stretch beyond [humiliation to Watercare]. It isn’t too much to say the betrayal by you has left a lasting scar.”
There, she refers to evidence heard in court of the impact on Shah’s fellow employees, with fears of people losing their jobs in the subsequent investigation. For those reasons, the judge rejected Shah’s request for home detention and the request to remain on bail while on appeal.
Shah’s theft from Auckland Council Watercare aimed to cover gambling debts
Shah has been convicted of creating 40 fake invoices across multiple projects, charging services to fictional contractors but using his own bank account number. This resulted in $1,039,146 in fraudulent payments to his account, leading to his arrest in November 2024.
Although none of the money has yet been paid back, Shah promised in court that he would, with a plan to pay back around half of the sum, paid thanks to an advance from his new employer and a loan from his parents. Since his arrest, Shah has also logged 267 hours of charity work. All of this was used by his defence lawyer to argue for a more lenient sentence.
The court heard that Shah’s gambling addiction began at Sky City Casino, then escalated when he was approached and invited to private games. As reported by the NZ Herald, defence lawyer David Jones stated that addicts are specifically targeted by these illegal gambling rings and offered large lines of credit before demanding payment.
Taking his gambling addiction and attempts to make amends into account, Jones asked for an end sentence of less than two years, as well as consideration for home detention. However, prosecutor Matthew Hall argued that the length of the theft over 17 months and the impact on his fellow employees demanded a custodial sentence.
Judge Davenport decided on an end sentence of two years and two months’ imprisonment, after allowing 55% in discounts for his guilty plea, good character and remorse, rehabilitation efforts, and the offer to pay the money back.
Featured image: Flickr, licensed under CC BY 2.0
