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Former Trio investment manager pleads guilty

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By Reporter
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2 minute read

The investment manager of ARP Capital Growth, one of the funds associated with collapsed firm Trio Capital, has pleaded guilty to 20 criminal charges at the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney.

Tony Maher, who changed his name from Paul Gresham, owned and controlled PST Management Pty Ltd, which acted as the investment manager of ARP.

Mr Maher admitted to making false or misleading statements resulting in PST receiving more than $500,000 in payments.

He faces a maximum penalty of five years in jail and/or a fine of $100,000 for each offence.

Among Mr Maher’s admissions was a false valuation of ARP’s shares in a British Virgin Island company known as Professional Pensions ARP Limited (PPARP), which he knew to be false and misleading.

As a result of the incorrect valuation, Trio made four investment fee payments to PST totalling $218,294.06, of which $147,945.78 was attributable to the false or misleading statements.

On 16 occasions between 28 July 2008 and 31 October 2009, Mr Maher concurred in publishing Trio valuations of ARP investments in PRARP that he knew to be false or misleading.

The 2008/2009 valuations resulted in Trio making 12 payments to PST totalling $564,991.06, of which $435,229.12 was attributable to the false or misleading statements.

Mr Maher was released on conditional bail and the matter will return to the Sydney District Court on 8 November 2013 for sentencing.

The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions is prosecuting the matter.