Photo: Alexia Russell
A man who was meant to be providing staff for Managed Isolation Quarantine facilities has allegedly fraudulently obtained nearly $1.5 million from the Ministry of Health.
The man, who has name suppression, was employed by a District Health Board in the North Island and was responsible for arranging staff at MIQ facilities.
It is alleged he created a company and invoiced the DHB on 12 occasions between January and May 2022 for services that purportedly involved staffing and logistics in managing those Covid quarantine facilities.
The Crown alleges that the DHB payments made to the defendant's company were meant to be paid to organisations that had actually provided the staff and done the work. But it is alleged none of them received any money.
The man faces 12 charges of obtaining by deception and according to the summary of facts these relate to invoices he sent to the District Health Board.
The Crown's case is that the largest of those invoices was for just over $300,000 for "logistical support and campervan security for facilities" within the DHB's catchment area.
Other invoices allegedly came in at $250,000 for "logistical support" at a hotel that was designated as an MIQ facility.
The company the man started was made up of volunteers between the ages of 24 and 75 and were described as pivotal to the regional Covid-19 response by an award that recognised community heroes.
The man, who no longer works for the DHB, first appeared in Manukau District Court earlier in 2022 before being transferred to Palmerston North District Court.
Today his lawyer Ron Mansfield successfully argued for an extension for the interim suppression to continue.
He is due to appear before the court again early October.
*This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.