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NSW DPP needs to Appeal Moylan Sentence in WHC Fraud

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Garpal Gumnut

Garpal Gumnut

Ross Island Hotel
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Many Australian investors and Super Funds lost millions when the professional agitator Moylan, manipulated the share trading of WHC.

He escapes with a pat on the back from a complacent judiciary.

NSW appears not to value a strong and safe investment climate.

In the NSW Supreme Court on Friday Justice David Davies sentenced Moylan to one year and eight months jail but ordered he be immediately released on the condition he be of good behaviour for two years and $1000 bond.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/jonathan-...ehaven-coal-20140725-zwwe7.html#ixzz38Shz7Hf7
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Moylan, who co-founded the Front Line Action on Coal group to protest against mining in the Leard State Forest in northwest NSW, has racked up series of convictions for minor offences such as trespassing in support of his cause.
But the creation and dissemination in January last year of a media release purportedly from the ANZ bank announcing its withdrawal of a $1.26 billion loan facility to Whitehaven Coal for its Maules Creek coal project was "much more than some sort of public mischief", Justice Davies said.
"Here, the market was manipulated, vast amounts of shares were unnecessarily traded and some investors lost money or their investment in Whitehaven entirely. These were not just 'day traders and speculators'... superannuation funds and ordinary investors suffered damage."
Moylan sent the email to 306 people including 295 journalists at 98 media organisations, some of which published or distributed stories, including the Australian Financial Review and Australian Associated Press. He included his phone number under the name of a genuine ANZ bank employee, Toby Kent, and told a number of journalists who rang the number that he was indeed Toby Kent and the press release was genuine.
A flurry of share trading followed and the stock plunged as much as 8.8 per cent before it was revealed to be a hoax. Whitehaven soon recovered its share price.
In imposing a prison sentence, Justice Davies said Moylan demonstrated a high degree of planning and premeditation
He also rejected the claim by Moylan's lawyers that journalists were more to blame than Moylan for the effect on the market because they didn't take more care to check the veracity of the release, calling it "hypocritical".
But he accepted Moylan had no concept of the ramifications of his deception upon the stockmarket, Whitehaven or its investors, particularly retirees. And after the initial deception he made no attempt to conceal the crime and always intended to admit it was a hoax. Further, he is contrite and remorseful.
"You did it for motives that I accept were sincerely held by you even though your methods of achieving them were wrong," Justice Davies said.
Moylan faced a maximum penalty of 10 years' jail or a fine of up to $765,000, or both. Justice Davies told Moylan he must stay out of trouble for two years or he could be imprisoned.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/jonathan-...e-anz-media-release-about-whitehaven-coal-201
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gg
 
Garpal Gumnut said:
Many Australian investors and Super Funds lost millions when the professional agitator Moylan, manipulated the share trading of WHC.

He escapes with a pat on the back from a complacent judiciary.

NSW appears not to value a strong and safe investment climate.
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Thanks for staying abreast of this one GG.

Whilst I wasn't directly impacted by that moron's delusional and fraudulent actions, I agree that the leniency shown by the courts sends a very apathetic message to society in general.

I wonder how many of those aggrieved by this (and similar crimes) might reconsider their decision to abide by the law, given the apparent freedom of accountability for the wilfull commission of crime this ruling conveys.
 
cynic said:
Thanks for staying abreast of this one GG.

Whilst I wasn't directly impacted by that moron's delusional and fraudulent actions, I agree that the leniency shown by the courts sends a very apathetic message to society in general.

I wonder how many of those aggrieved by this (and similar crimes) might reconsider their decision to abide by the law, given the apparent freedom of accountability for the wilfull commission of crime this ruling conveys.
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I would agree cynic.

Stupidity should not be an excuse for a lenient sentence in criminal matters.

Moylan is and has been stupid. He needs some time in gaol.

It makes one wonder whether NSW is losing it's grip on Financial Governance.

gg
 
Today I was sentenced – to one year and eight months, suspended with the condition of good behaviour for two years and released immediately on a $1,000 surety – for having mocked up a press release claiming that the ANZ Bank was no longer going to invest their customers’ money in the Maules Creek mine. Of course, ANZ was doing no such thing, and that's the point. My aim was simply to highlight that fact.

Hoax press releases are nothing new, and taking the piss with a purpose is part of a long tradition of creative mischief. What came as a shock, to me more than anybody else, was the panic caused on the trading room floor by my bluff – a bluff that had Asic tapping on my tent flap two days later.

For the record, I was not trying to crash the market. I was trying to highlight the fact that ANZ are funding the biggest open cut coal mine currently being constructed in Australia. Today I bear the consequences of that decision.
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It appears to me that Moylan shows no remorse, according to this Guardian article this evening.

He needs gaol.

gg
 
Garpal Gumnut said:
It appears to me that Moylan shows no remorse, according to this Guardian article this evening.

He needs gaol.

gg
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Unfortunatley, gaol tends to instil a message of resentment alongside education in crime by fellow inmates.

I believe that psychiatric health asylums may be better suited to dispensing with Moylan's style of lunatic menace. The criteria contained in DSM V would all but guarantee that Moylan is never able to reoffend as he'd be unlikely to be released prior to expiry of his mortal form.
 
cynic said:
Direct losses maybe, but have you included the widespread losses incurred by derivatives traders?
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Nope. But I sincerely doubt they run into the millions of dollars.

And yes, I think he was an idiot for doing it, but I don't see what good a prison term will do.
 
Given how lenient the courts are with rich, white collar crooks generally I have no issue with them letting this hippie go.
 
I agree with you, gg. He's an attention-seeking pest. My resentment at the outcome today is based on the reality that it will encourage him and his many silly supporters to replicate this puerile behaviour with other companies.

And McLovin, the actual sum of the losses doesn't seem that relevant to me. It could very well have included lots of small investors to whom the loss was highly significant. Why on earth should some arrogant kid be permitted to affect the market in any way at all by his irresponsible scam?
 
McLovin said:
Nope. But I sincerely doubt they run into the millions of dollars.

And yes, I think he was an idiot for doing it, but I don't see what good a prison term will do.
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At the very least it might have served as a warning to other deluded ratbags that this sort of behaviour will not be tolerated by our society.

Unfortunately the token "slap on the wrist" delivered isn't likely to deter this sort of fanaticism. If anything, the combination of free publicity with minimal consequence, will likely encourage further acts of this nature!
 
Garpal Gumnut said:
The quoted loss of value in WHC, in the article after his fraudulent hoax was $314m.

Please explain your $450k figure.

gg
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Actual losses from people selling and realising a loss in that 23 minute period. The $314m is just the change in market cap.

Julia said:
And McLovin, the actual sum of the losses doesn't seem that relevant to me.
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It's completely irrelevant. It's not even mentioned in the judgement. I was just correcting the statement in the OP that millions of dollars were lost.
 
McLovin said:
Actual losses from people selling and realising a loss in that 23 minute period. The $314m is just the change in market cap.



It's completely irrelevant. It's not even mentioned in the judgement. I was just correcting the statement in the OP that millions of dollars were lost.
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Can you provide a link to that figure of $450k

It is still a considerable amount.

gg
 
cynic said:
At the very least it might have served as a warning to other deluded ratbags that this sort of behaviour will not be tolerated by our society.

Unfortunately the token "slap on the wrist" delivered isn't likely to deter this sort of fanaticism. If anything, the combination of free publicity with minimal consequence, will likely encourage further acts of this nature!
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And that is exactly what has already happened. On ABC's "PM" this evening, Moylan was triumphantly predicting more of the same.:banghead:
 
Julia said:
And that is exactly what has already happened. On ABC's "PM" this evening, Moylan was triumphantly predicting more of the same.:banghead:
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I agree, Julia,

The NSW Govt. need to instruct the DPP to appeal this greenbogan's sentence.

gg
 
cynic said:
Certainly a heck of a lot more than that paltry $1,000 good behaviour bond!
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And a long way short of the $5 billion that has come off the market cap since they rejected takeover bids when the price was above $6 per share.
 
Ves said:
And a long way short of the $5 billion that has come off the market cap since they rejected takeover bids when the price was above $6 per share.
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Yes! The ripple effect certainly does make it difficult to fully quantify the financial impact of this event.
 
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