The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has alleged in court that a South Australian adviser misappropriated $3.1 million in client funds.
Robert Owen Bean, of St Peters, South Australia, has appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court facing 52 charges of dishonest conduct.
ASIC alleges that Bean – who was permanently banned from providing financial services by the regulator on 17 May 2011 – misappropriated money from eight of his clients' investment or superannuation accounts between 30 June 2003 and 30 June 2010.
ASIC claimed in a statement that the majority of the $3.1 million was used to pay other unrelated clients to maintain expected investment returns or pension payments that he had recommended to them – while only "some" of the money was used to fund Bean's lifestyle.
If convicted, each of the 52 charges carries a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment or a fine of $22,000, or both.
The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions is prosecuting the matter, which returns to court on 14 December 2012.
