The disgraced former musical director of the Nelson Symphony Orchestra has had four months knocked off his four-year jail term by convincing the court he will pay back about one-tenth of the money he owes Inland Revenue.
David John Lindup, 30, of Nelson, was sentenced in Juneafter admitting nine charges of making false GST returns, defrauding Inland Revenue of $866,773.
The Nelson Mail reported that Justice John Wild, in a High Court ruling released last week, described Lindup's case as a "sorry tale of deceitful greed".
In July, Lindup's lawyer Michael Vesty appealed to the High Court to have the four-year sentence reduced.
