Embezzlement case: Education Dept faces new questions
The troubled relationship between State Government ministers and the Education Department has taken another twist today over the case of a staff member who kept her job after being found guilty of embezzlement.
Court documents appear to contradict advice Education Minister Jennifer Rankine says she was given by her department that it had been kept in the dark about embezzlement charges against a Families SA financial counsellor.
InDaily has uncovered two affidavits, three written statements and court evidence that show the department’s apparent advice to Rankine is incorrect.
In fact, the documents show that departmental officers, including human resources staff, were aware of the woman’s offending. Several staff members from a Families SA field office also supported the woman through her court appearances, the documents show.
InDaily revealed on Tuesday that Melissa Green pleaded guilty to 16 embezzlement charges and was later employed as a financial counsellor at Families SA while she awaited sentencing.
Rankine told InDaily this week that she had been advised “there is no record of her (Green) informing the department about charges laid against her, as is required”.
However, court documents detail that disclosures were made.
When asked for a response, Rankine today provided a statement that was restricted to the issue of whether or not Green’s initial employment form of July 2010 had been properly filled out. The form pre-dates the laying of charges.
Rankine’s department head, Tony Harrison, declined to answer InDaily’s question about whether he agreed that there was no record of Green informing the department about the charges.
Harrison provided the following statement via his media unit: “He has asked for a full chronology of events surrounding this matter and explanations and that is underway.
“Clearly however there are matters of process and conduct that are of great concern and require the appropriate internal scrutiny.
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“It is both too early and inappropriate at this point for the Department to elaborate on the circumstances of Ms Green’s appointment and other matters surrounding what representations certain Families SA staff made to the court on Ms Green’s behalf and why.”
Yesterday, Harrison told FIVEaa that he questioned why Green had been allowed to keep her job.
“I would very much question the appropriateness of the person maintaining their job in a government department, or in any department for that matter, if they’ve been convicted on 15 or 16 counts of dishonesty, embezzlement,” he told Leon Byner.
Two affidavits, three written statements and court evidence show a succession of occasions where Green informed her superiors and the human resources section of the department about the proceedings against her.
The documents, read in full by InDaily with the permission of the court, detail meetings, conversations, references, assurances and staffing decisions – all based on full disclosure by Green of the dishonesty charges and conviction.
The Families SA employee was sentenced to 15 months’ gaol, with a non-parole period of eight months, and recently won an appeal for the sentence to be suspended.
She had pleaded guilty on 5 November 2010 to 16 counts of theft relating to the embezzlement of $118,978 from her employer while working as an administration manager for a software vendor between February 2006 and December 2009.
In mid-2012, while still on remand for the 16 charges and having pleaded guilty, Green won a position in Families SA as a financial counsellor in the financial counselling and support program.
In an affidavit dated 28 June 2013, Melissa Green told the Supreme Court she had told her supervisor Bianca O’Brien and they jointly approached another department official Jenna Kovacs “and disclosed my offending”.
“Both were made aware of the severity of my offending. They were both aware of the amount of money I had taken,” Green stated.
“Both were prepared to provide character references to the court.”
The affidavit further stated that “both Ms O’Brien and Ms Kovacs attended at court to support me on various occasions”.
It didn’t stop there.
Green’s affidavit then discloses another meeting.
“When I discussed my situation with the Human Resources Department of Families SA, they were made aware that my offending was dishonesty and related to the taking of money.
“My discussion with them was in relation to the continuity of my employment should I be given a suspended sentence.”
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Green’s version of the support she received is backed up by another court document; an affidavit dated 5 July 2013 from her lawyer Damon Creagh Ind detailing conversations with and attendances by Families SA staff.
“It is my recollection that Ms Kovacs and Ms O’Brien were present in court supporting Ms Green at various times during the sentencing process.
“I am certain, however, that both Ms Kovacs and Ms O’Brien would have been present and heard for themselves the gravity of Ms Green’s offending.”
The lawyer then details a conversation he had with one Families SA official after his client had been sentenced.
“Indeed, Ms O’Brien spoke to me subsequent to Ms Green being sentenced and offered to assist with the funding of Ms Green’s appeal against the sentence.”
The affidavit doesn’t make it clear if the funding offer came from O’Brien as an individual or as a representative of Families SA.
In her appeal against the magistrate’s decision not to suspend the gaol sentence, Green also submitted to the court in an affidavit dated 14 June 2013 that she had discussed options with Families SA.
“If I was to receive a conviction and a suspended sentence, the human resources department had informed me that I would be on a supervised work performance program of 12-24 months.
“I also told Mr Ind that if I was to continue my work in the child protection role that I would still be permitted to continue in that field.”
The question of Green’s employment at Families SA was a central part of pre-sentencing reports prepared for the court.
A report by a North East Community Correction Centre officer, dated 7 August 2012, stated: “Ms Green reported that she is still permanently employed with Families SA and currently works 0.8 (80 per cent part time).”
“She stated that she negotiated with them to reduce her full time status to allow more time for her to go to court…”
In addition to the affidavits and reports that detail the awareness within Families SA, a further three written statements make it clear that department officials knew of Green’s offending.
There are two statements from Families SA Elizabeth office senior social worker Bianca O’Brien – one dated 2 May 2011, and another 26 October 2012.
InDaily has previously reported the existence of a statement from Families SA senior social worker Jenna Kovacs, dated 2 October 2012.
That statement reveals that “I am aware Melissa Green has pleaded guilty in relation to the theft offences she was charged for in 2010.”
The Kovacs statement also details how “Melissa had recently undergone an interview process and secured the role of financial counsellor with the Financial Counselling and Support Program at our office.
There is a third reference, dated 1 May 2011, from Rebecca Gibson.
It stated: “I met Melissa Kay Green at the beginning of August 2010 when she began working for Families SA as a community support worker in my team.”
Rankine’s office today confirmed that she had been given a briefing from her department.
“On August 20 the Minister was shown an internal DECD Investigations Unit briefing that contained the following statement:
“Ms Green’s signed clearance application declaration dated the 5 July 2010 does not declare previous or current professional disciplinary proceedings or any action that might lead to such proceedings in any jurisdiction.”
The Minister’s response makes no mention of the events detailed in the affidavits, written statements and court evidence.
