The fraud resulted in a loss of position and reputation and he was subjected to substantial ridicule and humiliation.Brian Quinn was appointed the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Australia’s (then) largest retailer – Coles Myer – in February 1983.
In 1987 he was appointed as Chairman – a position he held until October 1991and ceased to be Chief Executive Officer in July of 1992.
Quinn was named Businessman of the Year by Australian Business in 1988, recognizing him as a leader in the Australian business community.
Even by today’s standards, Quinn was well remunerated.
In 1988/9 his salary was more than $1.4m. He received a $5m bonus for his efforts in relation to a major merger with Myer and $850,000 under a restraint agreement. When he ceased to be Chairman and Chief Executive Officer he became entitled to receive an additional $5m from the company.
His fraud on Coles Myer remains one of Australia’s most blatant and extravagant abuses of power, position and privilege.
***
In January 1985 Quinn bought a large property at 6 County Terrace in Templestowe, Victoria.
Beginning in late 1985 and continuing until late in 1988 renovations were made to the property that became the source of great public notoriety for its extravagance and wastefulness.
Covering the equivalent of five suburban blocks, his hilltop house had four bedrooms, four bathrooms, a family room, a billiard room and a four-car garage even before its renovations, which added a tennis court and tennis pavilion, a cricket pitch, swimming pool and spa house, a grand entranceway, several chandeliers, marble in the bathrooms and granite in the kitchens and increased the garage to accommodate eight cars for Quinn’s Bentley, Ferrari and Mercedes.
Remembering that the dollars that follows were in the currency of more than 20 years ago – the cost of painting the residence: $1.1m; the cost of air-conditioning: $240,000; a security system: $44,000; a brick drive and gates $157,000; a chandelier: $38,000; mirror glass for the kitchen: $15,000; kitchen cupboards: $43,000 and the re-glazing of a single bay window: $110,000.
Of the $6m or so spent on the renovations all but about $74,000 was fraudulently paid for by Coles Myer.
The fraudulent payments were of two kinds.
Most of them were false invoices, showing the work as done or to be done on some property other than County Terrace – usually it mentioned the Coles Myer headquarters.
There were many other invoices, which, while directed to the company, correctly identified the site of the work as County Terrace.
Quinn had directed Graham Lanyon – the National Controller of Maintenance at Coles Myer – to “bury” away from prying eyes the true circumstances behind the costs of the renovations.
***
It was not that the Board of Coles Myer was not made aware of the irregularities – or at least should have been made aware.
In 1988/9 his salary was more than $1.4m. He received a $5m bonus for his efforts in relation to a major merger with Myer and $850,000 under a restraint agreement. When he ceased to be Chairman and Chief Executive Officer he became entitled to receive an additional $5m from the company.
His fraud on Coles Myer remains one of Australia’s most blatant and extravagant abuses of power, position and privilege.
***
In January 1985 Quinn bought a large property at 6 County Terrace in Templestowe, Victoria.
Beginning in late 1985 and continuing until late in 1988 renovations were made to the property that became the source of great public notoriety for its extravagance and wastefulness.
Covering the equivalent of five suburban blocks, his hilltop house had four bedrooms, four bathrooms, a family room, a billiard room and a four-car garage even before its renovations, which added a tennis court and tennis pavilion, a cricket pitch, swimming pool and spa house, a grand entranceway, several chandeliers, marble in the bathrooms and granite in the kitchens and increased the garage to accommodate eight cars for Quinn’s Bentley, Ferrari and Mercedes.
Remembering that the dollars that follows were in the currency of more than 20 years ago – the cost of painting the residence: $1.1m; the cost of air-conditioning: $240,000; a security system: $44,000; a brick drive and gates $157,000; a chandelier: $38,000; mirror glass for the kitchen: $15,000; kitchen cupboards: $43,000 and the re-glazing of a single bay window: $110,000.
Of the $6m or so spent on the renovations all but about $74,000 was fraudulently paid for by Coles Myer.
The fraudulent payments were of two kinds.
Most of them were false invoices, showing the work as done or to be done on some property other than County Terrace – usually it mentioned the Coles Myer headquarters.
There were many other invoices, which, while directed to the company, correctly identified the site of the work as County Terrace.
Quinn had directed Graham Lanyon – the National Controller of Maintenance at Coles Myer – to “bury” away from prying eyes the true circumstances behind the costs of the renovations.
***
It was not that the Board of Coles Myer was not made aware of the irregularities – or at least should have been made aware.
The Managing Director of the air-conditioning contractor became concerned that there seemed to be irregularities in documentation and wrote to the Coles Myer Board via the Company Secretary.
Remarkably the letter was never brought to the attention of the Coles Myer Board or to any individual director other than Quinn. Nothing that could properly be described as an internal investigation was ever carried out by Coles Myer.
Quinn told the Managing Director of the air-conditioning contractor that he had committed “commercial suicide” by raising his concerns and that “it was a pity we couldn’t have handled it in club”.
***
Quinn was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud and was sentenced in 1997 to four years’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of two years and six months.
Quinn would conclude his business career in jail making deck chairs to be sold to Kmart – a subsidiary of the entity that he used to oversee.
Quinn told the Managing Director of the air-conditioning contractor that he had committed “commercial suicide” by raising his concerns and that “it was a pity we couldn’t have handled it in club”.
***
Quinn was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud and was sentenced in 1997 to four years’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of two years and six months.
Quinn would conclude his business career in jail making deck chairs to be sold to Kmart – a subsidiary of the entity that he used to oversee.
0 comments:
Post a Comment