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A serial con artist who swindled more than $180,000 from women he met on dating sites will spend at least two years behind bars.
Rick McLeod convinced four women he met on the site Oasis to invest through his so-called broker business between July 2017 and June 2019.
Rick McLeod outside the County Court in June 2023.Credit: AAP
Each of the women sent McLeod money, ranging from $15,200 to $80,000, believing they would get their funds back with interest.
But McLeod instead used the money to fund his drinking and gambling habits, only repaying $9900 of the $182,200 he took from his victims.
McLeod pleaded guilty in the Victorian County Court to charges of obtaining financial advantage and property by deception after one of the women went to police.
County Court Judge Peter Rozen on Friday described McLeod’s offending as callous, saying the 74-year-old took advantage of the women and their emotions.
County Court Judge Peter Rozen said the community needed to be protected from McLeod.Credit: Darrian Traynor
In statements to the court, the victims said they felt embarrassed and ashamed after McLeod’s offending, and that they could no longer trust anyone.
“It’s clear it’s had a devastating and enduring impact,” Rozen said in his sentencing remarks.
McLeod’s lawyer argued there was a link between his client’s crimes and his diagnosed alcohol-use disorder, depression and borderline personality disorder.
But Rozen said he could not see the connection, noting McLeod had never been treated for his conditions and his mental capacity was not compromised.
“You were fully aware of what you were doing,” he said.
Rozen noted McLeod had 400 dishonesty offences on his criminal record dating back to the 1980s and had previously served jail time for similar offending.
Protection of the community was important when it came to sentencing because McLeod’s prospects of rehabilitation were poor, Rozen said.
McLeod was sentenced for three years and 10 months. He will be eligible for parole after two years and three months.
He was also ordered to pay one of the victims $78,000 in compensation.
-AAP
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