Latest news with #embezzlement
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Taylor Swift tour at centre of allegations against Guy Sebastian's ex-manager
Guy Sebastian's former manager is alleged to have embezzled $187,000 earnt by the pop star for supporting Taylor Swift, leaving the Australian Idol winner to take home $23,000 from the tour, a court has been told. Titus Emanuel Day is standing trial in the NSW District Court where he has denied embezzling hundreds of thousands in royalties and performance fees from the pop star. The court has been told that Mr Day was Mr Sebastian's long-time manager – through his 6 Degrees agency – and friend before they had a bitter falling out in 2017. The Crown alleges that Mr Day failed to remit performance fees and royalties that were collected on Mr Sebastian's behalf by Mr Day. Mr Day has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of embezzlement as a clerk or servant and one count of attempting to dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception. On day two of his trial on Friday, his lawyers told the jury that Mr Day denied doing anything dishonest or fraudulent. One of the charges relates to an allegation that Mr Day failed to remit $187,000 to Mr Sebastian for performance fees as a support act for Swift on her 2013 tour of Australia. Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield SC told the court that the booking agent paid $494,000 – in the form of four payments of about $123,000 – into a 6 Degrees trust account following the four arena performances. According to the Crown case, Mr Day was entitled to a commission of $59,000 and Mr Sebastian should have been paid $435,000 according to the 80-20 split in his contract with 6 Degrees. However, Mr Hatfield told the jury, Mr Sebastian was only paid $247,500, leaving $187,500 unpaid. Mr Sebastian paid $179,000 to his band and for other expenses for the tour. 'You'll see effectively when you look at it that Mr Sebastian, of the $247,000 paid to him, he had already paid out of his own pocket $179,000,' Mr Hatfield said. 'Effectively he cleared $68,000 out of which he also had to pay GST of $45,000. 'So effectively he made about $23,000 for those four performances, while the accused retained about $246,000, whereas he should have been paid $59,000 as his commission.' It's alleged that Mr Sebastian was also not paid for corporate gigs, performances at the Opera House, a Big Bash game and Dreamworld and for singing at weddings in Italy and Sydney. The court was told that in 2018 he filed proceedings against Mr Day in the Federal Court that prompted his former manager and 6 Degrees to file a counterclaim Mr Sebastian took the stand before the lunch adjournment on Friday afternoon. He told the court that he first met Mr Day through the manager's wife, Courtney, whom he met via his record label. And three years after he won the inaugural Australian Idol, he agreed to join Mr Day, who was working at the 22 Management agency at the time. 'I was signed to Sony Music and one of the employees that I had a lot to do with on the recording side was Courtney Day,' Mr Sebastian told the court on Friday. 'And Courtney Day is married to Titus. And Courtney was recommending her husband as a manager.' The court has been told that in 2009, Mr Sebastian agreed to follow Mr Day when he opened his own agency, 6 Degrees. Mr Day's barrister Thomas Woods, in his opening remarks to the jury on Friday morning, said his client firmly denied doing anything criminal. 'There will be no dispute that on some occasions money did come into that account which my client should have transferred onto Mr Sebastian but did not,' Mr Woods said. 'For many of the charges, the real question is not going to be whether my client failed to transfer the money to Mr Sebastian but whether his failure to do that was criminal.' He said there was a 'major dispute' in the case about whether there was any fraud or dishonesty in Mr Day's actions. 'The background is the breakdown of a personal relationship … and a commercial relationship between the two men that went on for many years,' Mr Woods said. 'What was once a close friendship and business relationship turned sour. Both men claimed that the other owed him money.'
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Guy Sebastian to take stand in trial of ex-manager over embezzlement allegations
Guy Sebastian is set to take the stand in the trial of his former manager Titus Day who is defending a raft of embezzlement allegations. Day is currently standing trial in the NSW District Court to defend against claims he embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars in royalties and performance fees from the Battle Scars hitmaker. He has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of embezzlement as a clerk or servant and one count of attempting to dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception. The trial commenced on Thursday and Sebastian, 43, is expected to take to the stand in 'the coming days', The Australian reported on Friday. Sebastian was first managed by Day when he worked, as a senior client management executive for the 22 Management Agency, the jury was told on Thursday. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. In 2009, Day established his own agency, 6Degrees, where Sebastian became the 'marquee client'. It was alleged the pair's relationship began to sour after Sebastian discovered what he alleged to be irregularities in financial records. It was also claimed that Day, who worked on a 20 per cent commission of Sebastian's income after costs, failed to pay royalties and performance fees collected on the Australian Idol winner's behalf. The publication reported that one of the charges related to a claim that Day failed to pay Sebastian $187,000 - a performance fee for his support act slot on Taylor Swift's 2013 Australian tour. During the first day of Day's trial on Thursday, Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield SC informed the court that Sebastian had placed a 'significant trust' in his manager, who then 'abused' that trust by embezzling his money. 'Through his role as Mr Sebastian's manager, and his capacity of collecting his money on behalf of Mr Sebastian, the accused is alleged to have embezzled Mr Sebastian's money and he's done that by collecting Mr Sebastian's money and failing to remit it in accordance with his agreement,' Hatfield said. 'Mr Sebastian will tell you that this agreement reposed significant trust in the accused and the Crown case is that the accused abused this trust by dishonestly embezzling Mr Sebastian's money.' Before the trial's commencement, Day spoke to about his ongoing, eight-year legal battle. 'I also just want it over,' he told the publication. Aside from Sebastian, Day has also managed a raft of high-profile clients including Grant Denyer, Sophie Monk, Tina Arena, and Stephanie Rice.
News.com.au
a day ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Guy Sebastian to take stand in trial of ex-manager over embezzlement allegations
Guy Sebastian is expected to take the stand in a Sydney court in the coming days as his former manager battles allegations he embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Aussie pop star. Titus Emanuel Day is standing trial in the NSW District Court where he has denied he embezzled hundreds of thousands in royalties and performance fees owed to the superstar musician. On day one of Mr Day's trial on Thursday, Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield SC told the jury that the inaugural Australian Idol winner had an arrangement with Mr Day and his company 6 Degrees to manage his career and affairs. Mr Hatfield told the court that Mr Sebastian placed a 'significant trust' in his manager and that he 'abused' that by embezzling his money. 'Through his role as Mr Sebastian's manager, and his capacity of collecting his money on behalf of Mr Sebastian, the accused is alleged to have embezzled Mr Sebastian's money and he's done that by collecting Mr Sebastian's money and failing to remit it in accordance with his agreement,' Mr Hatfield said. Mr Day has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of embezzlement as a clerk or servant and one count of attempting to dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception. Mr Sebastian is expected to be called to give evidence in the coming days. The court was told on Thursday afternoon that Mr Sebastian was previously managed by the 22 Management agency, where he first worked with Mr Day. He then agreed to join Mr Day's 6 Degrees company as a marquee client when Mr Day broke away and formed his own company in 2009. The court heard that their relationship began to deteriorate over time after he found what he alleged were irregularities in his financial records. The court heard that Mr Day worked on a commission of 20 per cent of Mr Sebastian's income after costs. It's alleged by the Crown that Mr Day failed to remit performance fees and royalties which were collected on Mr Sebastian's behalf. The court was told that one of the charges related to an allegation that Mr Day failed to remit $187,000 to Mr Sebastian for performance fees as a support act for Taylor Swift on her 2013 tour of Australia. The court was told that in 2018 Mr Sebastian filed proceedings in the Federal Court, which prompted Mr Day and 6 Degrees to file a counterclaim. 'Mr Sebastian will tell you that this agreement reposed significant trust in the accused and the Crown case is that the accused abused this trust by dishonestly embezzling Mr Sebastian's money,' Mr Hatfield said. The trial before Judge Alister Abadee will continue with Mr Hatfield's opening submissions on Friday before Mr Day's barrister Thomas Woods will give his opening to the jury.
CBS News
a day ago
- Business
- CBS News
Anne Arundel County church employee accused of stealing $10,000 from her job
A church employee in Anne Arundel County is accused of stealing more than $10,000 from the job. Lori Kirschner Griffith allegedly embezzled money from St. Paul's Lutheran Church and School from December 2024 through February 2025. She was the payroll coordinator. Church leaders filed a police report after discovering discrepancies in the church's payroll journals, according to charging documents. The investigation determined that Kirschner Griffith was adding additional funds to her paycheck and hiding those transactions in the before and after-school payroll accounts. Kirschner Griffith worked at St. Paul's since 2023 and was the sole financial officer responsible for distributing funds. She is charged with embezzlement, theft, and theft scheme. Former Anne Arundel County pastor sentenced Earlier this month, Jerome Isaac Hurley, a former pastor at the Miracle Temple Church in Lothian, Maryland, was sentenced to five years of supervised probation for not paying taxes on the nearly $350,000 that he stole from the church, according to the Maryland Attorney General's Office. According to court documents, Hurley filed an insurance claim on behalf of the church after a fire at the church parsonage in 2020. The church was paid $350,000 by the insurance company. Hurley stole $347,000 from the church and deposited the money into his personal account, and used the money for personal expenses, according to court records. Harford County pastor charged with theft from church In April, a Harford County pastor was accused of stealing more than $100,000 from his church. Pastor Daniel Champ was charged with theft of over $100,000 and embezzlement from the First Baptist Church. According to the Harford County Sheriff's Office, church officials noticed suspicious bank charges and missing money in October 2024. According to the indictment, the theft began in January 2019 and continued until he was caught in 2024. Investigators said Pastor Champ took more than $135,000 for personal use, such as DoorDash, PayPal, and sports betting.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ex-lawyer pleads guilty to embezzling $530K from disabled client
The Brief Former Tacoma lawyer Colby Parks pleaded guilty to wire fraud for embezzling over $530,000 from a disabled client's trust account, which he managed since 2010. Parks misused funds for personal gain, leaving only $15 in the victim's trust by 2019, forcing her to sell her home; he also manipulated financial records to conceal his actions, court records say. Parks resigned his law license amid investigations, and prosecutors are seeking a prison sentence of up to 33 months. TACOMA, Wash. - A former Tacoma lawyer pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $530,000 from a disabled client over the course of a decade. Colby Parks, 65, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in the U.S. District Court in Seattle, all in connection with a years-long scheme where prosecutors say he embezzled money from a client's trust account after they were permanently injured in a motorcycle accident. Timeline According to court records, Parks became the trustee of the client's account in 2010, which was intended to help pay the victim's expenses after the accident. At first, that trust account held around $1.66 million, but for the next seven years, Parks withdrew funds for personal use, court records say. Eventually, only $20,000 was left in the account. Court records say Parks had the victim take out a reverse mortgage on her home, and Parks used the money to fund the trust account — which he then continued to transfer to his own accounts. Prosecutors say, over the course of 10 years, Parks transferred some $880,000 from the victim's trust accounts, at least $530,000 more than he was entitled to as his management fees. By 2019, the victim had only $15 left in her trust, forcing her to sell her home. Parks then siphoned some of the funds from the sale, as well, claiming it was money he had advanced her and was owed, court records say. Dig deeper Washington's Adult Protective Services investigated Parks and the victim, and he told auditors he was only paid a flat rate of $24,000, court records say. Prosecutors allege he then changed that number to $54,000 per year when they asked for documentation, but they believe he was paying himself well over $80,000 per year from the victim's trust. The Washington State Bar launched a separate investigation, at which point Parks resigned his law license rather than be disbarred. Prosecutors have requested Parks be sentenced to no more than 33 months — or 2.75 years — in prison during his sentencing, scheduled for August 29. The Source Information in this story comes from the U.S. District Court in Seattle. Sweltering weather in store for Seattle this week Motorcyclist killed, driver arrested after Puyallup crash Mom of slain Idaho victim Xana Kernodle asks for help attending Bryan Kohberger trial Seattle Memorial Day weekend 2025: Your guide to events, traffic, more Tears, heartbreak at Chase Jones sentencing—teen in fatal Renton, WA crash To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter. Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
