A financial adviser has been found guilty by the District Court of Western Australia of stealing from his clients.
On 15 June, Perth-based adviser Mark Sebo was found guilty on 36 counts, a court spokesperson confirmed.
Sebo, 41, had been accused of duping eight clients into transferring some $1 million from their superannuation accounts into personal online gambling accounts between July and August 2019, as reported by the ABC.
Previously, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) told Money Management that charges of stealing under the Western Australian Criminal Code were brought by Western Australia Police in this matter.
Sebo had been arrested in 2019 and pleaded not guilty to the charges.
It is understood he represented himself at the trial and denied any wrongdoing.
Following the guilty verdict, the matter was listed for sentencing on 22 September 2023.
According to information published on the Financial Adviser Register (FAR), Sebo first provided advice in 2003.
He had previously been an authorised representative of Perth-based firm Sentry Financial Planning between 2009 and 2014.
He had been with dealer group MCA Financial Planners from 2014 to 2018.
This incident marked the second prominent case this year of an adviser cheating clients to fund a gambling habit. Earlier this year, Sydney adviser Gavin Fineff was sentenced after he pleaded guilty to deceiving 12 victims out of a total of $3.4 million over a period of three and a half years.
A police investigation into his gambling revealed he had been a customer of Betfair from 24 March 2010 to 30 May 2020. His final bet was on 22 February 2020.
He lost $758,510 with Ladbrokes over a period of 21 months from 5 June 2018, lost $3,659,843.08 with Sportsbet/BetEasy between 28 June 2014 and 5 October 2018, and had also been a client of Tabcorp since 27 June 2009. His last bet was on 20 June 2018.
Fineff was sentenced to an aggregate term of imprisonment consisting of a total term of nine years and a non-parole period of five years and four months.
He would be eligible for release on parole on 12 February 2028.
