Indigenous leader locked up for 'calculated' $1m theft

An Indigenous community says a six-year prison term for a "morally reprehensible" leader who stole almost $1 million proves their voices have finally been heard. Geoff Clark was sentenced on Friday in the Victorian County Court to six years and two months behind bars for the "carefully calculated" offending. The 72-year-old will be eligible for parole after serving three years and nine months in jail. Members of the Framlingham community, from Victoria's far west, said the sentence was a "long time coming" and showed they had the power to fight corruption. "I hope other communities out there on the state and national level take notice, because you could do this too," Joanne McGuiness told reporters outside court. "If you've got other mob out there that are overpowering you as a grassroot community - stand up. You've got a right to be heard." Three separate juries convicted Clark on 25 charges of theft, obtaining financial advantage by deception, perjury and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime. The former chairman of the disbanded Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission was found to have stolen $922,214 from four Indigenous organisations, including the Framlingham Aboriginal Trust, between 2001 and 2015. Clark used $404,344 to pay legal fees as he faced criminal and civil proceedings in the early 2000s over historical allegations of gang rape and an assault. He was ultimately convicted of obstructing police at Warrnambool's Criterion Hotel, while a civil jury found he led two pack rapes against a teenage girl in the 1970s. A further $56,020 went to Clark's housing expenses, including rates, electricity and water bills. Clark betrayed the trust of his community and conflated his personal interests with their interests, Judge Michael O'Connell said in handing down the sentence. "You stole on multiple occasions ... to strengthen your power and influence in the community," the judge told Clark during sentencing. "What you did was aptly described as morally reprehensible." It was difficult to reconcile Clark's "fearless" advocacy work and his offending, Judge O'Connell said. He noted Clark had improved the Framlingham community in the 1980s and 1990s and had even attended the United Nations to fight for the rights of Indigenous people. But the judge found Clark developed a sense of entitlement and treated the community's finances as his own. Judge O'Connell said Clark had no remorse for his offending, but was a man in his later years with health issues including diabetes and his sentence was moderated to reflect those factors. Clark, who watched the hearing via video link from prison, looked down at his hands as his sentence was delivered. Clark's son Jeremy, 51, was also sentenced on Friday to two years and two months in prison after he was found guilty of theft and false accounting, but his term was wholly suspended. A jury found Jeremy Clark stole $231,969 from the Aboriginal organisations to help fund his father's legal fees. He also pleaded guilty to wrongly obtaining $10,780 as a grant from the federal government. Jeremy Clark was given a recognisance release order, requiring him to be of good behaviour for two years. 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14