Pinery bushfire victim who stole $200,000 from her employer spared jail

A woman who stole $200,000 from her employer while affected by trauma from the deadly Pinery bushfires has been spared jail.

Kylie Marie Kemp, 39, was employed as an administration manager of the Combined Independent Agents Association, which deals with livestock sales.

The District Court heard Kemp started stealing money within months of the fire, which devastated the mid-north community in November 2015.

Two people were killed, 70,000 stock were lost and almost 100 homes and 400 farm structures were destroyed in the blaze, which burnt more than 82,500 hectares of land.

The court heard Kemp desperately tried to save her horses and property before having to evacuate.

Judge Geraldine Davison said the trauma of the bushfires “informed” the offending to some extent.

“I accept that this bushfire has had a significant impact upon your mental health and that the impact is ongoing.

“I accept that you have an unresolved post-traumatic stress disorder that has only been more recently addressed by you, in part by moving from Templers to another country town to begin your life again.”

The court heard that over a period of about one year and seven months, Kemp stole a total of more than $200,000 by diverting payments to her own bank account.

It heard the discrepancies were discovered years later after Kemp had left the company and the accounting system was changed to a new program.

Kemp was arrested in 2020 and pleaded guilty to 25 counts of theft.

The court heard Kemp described herself as a “shopaholic” but the only extravagant items she purchased with the stolen money was a $17,000 horse and “two wardrobes of prestigious clothing”.

“Exactly why you offended is not clear to me,” Judge Davison said.

The court heard Kemp had experienced other significant traumas in her life, including the death of her sister and of her first husband, who was killed in a dirt bike accident the day after their wedding.

Judge Davison said it was clear Kemp had unresolved mental health issues and needed ongoing psychological support.

“You spent the money on clothing for you and your son, in addition to purchasing a horse that you would not otherwise have been able to afford without impinging upon your lifestyle. It is not clear what else you spent the money on,” she said. 

The court heard Kemp had repaid the money through personal loans from family.

‘Greedy’ offending ‘out of character’

Judge Davison said she had received a number of “glowing references” that suggested the offending was out of character.

However, Judge Davison said the offending was “very serious”.

“What is clear is that your offending was as a result of greed, and in no way could it be said to have been as a result of need,” she said.

“You were in a position of trust within the company. It was your knowledge of the systems that enabled you to defraud the company of a significant sum of money.”

After allowing significant discounts for Kemp’s guilty pleas, Judge Davison imposed a sentence of three years and seven months with a non-parole period of two years and nine months.

In what she described as a “lineball decision”, Judge Davison said she came to the view that Kemp should be allowed to serve the sentence in home detention on a number of conditions.