A Ministry of Social Development case manager who stole from her own clients to pay her bills has lost her bid to keep her name secret.
Denise Clout spent seven years using the names of needy people to apply for special hardship grants, then pocketed the cash. She even ticked the “recoverable” box, forcing MSD to deduct the debt from her clients’ benefits.
At the Auckland District Court on Wednesday, Judge Deb Bell said Clout’s offending was a “significant breach of trust.” Her attempts to avoid a criminal record and name publication both failed.
Clout defrauded MSD of $50,547.79 through 72 fake applications and made nine extra transfers to a Work and Income card, adding another $3490 to her fraud.
Two victims sat in court as Judge Bell outlined how Clout turned them into debtors. Some were elderly; others had mental health issues.
“I thought the last bastion of trust was a Government department,” one victim wrote. “I was deeply mistaken.”
Clout’s lawyer, Annabel Cresswell, said her client had fled an abusive marriage and suffered health problems, arguing a conviction could harm her mental health and job prospects.
But Judge Bell said the fraud continued long after the marriage ended, and Clout had family support. Losing promotions, she said, was a natural result of committing fraud.
Clout was sentenced to six months’ community detention — an overnight curfew — so she can keep her telco job and repay the money.
At her current rate of $20 a week, it would take 51 years to pay it all back.
Her request for name suppression was rejected after a victim opposed it. Judge Bell said open justice outweighed Clout’s embarrassment.
Denise Clout defrauded MSD and NZ beneficiaries. File.
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