Former MP avoids jail in Australia — ABC News Australia
In Australia, the Adelaide Magistrates Court sentenced former South Australian MP Fraser Ellis to 10 months in prison on seven counts of deception, but the sentence was suspended. A condition was that he sign a 12-month good behaviour bond.
As reported by ABC News Australia, Magistrate Simon Smart said the claims submitted by Ellis were not mistakes but contained deliberate falsehoods. The court found that the former parliamentarian fraudulently obtained 4,676 Australian dollars for 20 nights between December 5, 2018, and May 1, 2020. The money has already been repaid.
Accommodation allowance
The case concerned the Country Members Allowance, a fund to cover accommodation costs for regional MPs who need to travel on parliamentary business. According to the magistrate, Ellis's actions were a serious breach of trust because they involved public funds.
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At the time of the offences, Ellis was a Liberal Party MP representing the Narungga electorate on the Yorke Peninsula. After the charges became public in 2021, he left the party and became an independent MP. In 2024, following a trial, Ellis was found guilty on four counts of deception and acquitted on 19 others. The prosecution appealed the acquittals, and in July the Court of Appeal replaced three of them with convictions.
Ellis's position
After the hearing, Ellis said he disagreed with the court's conclusion that his actions were criminal in nature. He described the situation as negligence or carelessness in completing the documents, but said he accepted responsibility for it and accepted the sentence imposed.
The court also took into account that Ellis had no prior convictions, had not committed any offences since his arrest, and has family responsibilities. After losing his seat in the March state parliamentary election, he unsuccessfully sought other work and now does irregular work for his father.
