Waikato woman stole $7k from employer Early Education Waikato

Lisa Ann McKenzie, 43, of Hamilton, was sentenced to 120 hours' community work and ordered to pay back the $7378.40 she stole from Early Education Waikato between 2021 and 2023. Photo / Facebook

A woman working for an early childhood provider stole more than $7000 from the organisation, leaving a large ripple effect on the staff and students.

Now, mother of three Lisa Ann McKenzie has been sentenced for the theft, which was only discovered after she left her job as an administrator at Early Education Waikato (EEW) in 2023.

The organisation’s chief executive Edna Frame told Judge Kiriana Tan in the Hamilton District Court she firmly believes McKenzie was responsible for more than $7000.

An audit the company carried out discovered more than $30,000, involving 258 transactions, had gone missing between 2021 and 2023, but police had only been able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that McKenzie was responsible for $7378.40.

“The only reason it’s $7400 is because police could not get retailers, and places that Lisa had purchased from, to follow through and verify that had happened,” Frame told the judge.

“But from our end, it is very definite that those [258] were transactions made by her. In fact, two of those transactions were made after she was no longer working for us.”

McKenzie had been the administrator at EEW’s two centres in the suburbs of Fairfield and Claudelands and after the thefts were discovered, blame was initially cast on locals in the area.

“Both of the centres are in low socio-economic areas, so it did actually impact quite widely where there were questions around how budgets were being spent.”

Judge Tan acknowledged Frame’s comments that more money had gone but she could only sentence McKenzie based on the $7000 figure.

“I know that the reality from your perspective might be different to what I’m dealing with today.”

McKenzie was arrested and charged with one charge of theft by a person in a special relationship.

She first appeared in court in November last year and pleaded guilty the following month.

The 43-year-old was back in court last week for sentencing by Judge Tan.

‘Accounting discrepencies’

McKenzie worked at EEW between 2005 and 2023, moving into an administrator role in 2018.

That role meant she was authorised to use the company credit card to make business-related purchases.

However, in January 2021, she began using the credit card for her own purchases and intentionally omitted recording them, along with the receipts, into the finance logbook.

She left her job there in October 2023.

It was only when a newly hired administrator took over that she spied “accounting discrepancies” and the company carried out an audit.

Lisa Ann McKenzie, 43, of Hamilton. Photo / Facebook

In total, they found the card was used 258 times in that 33-month period, totalling $31,444.52.

However, police were only able to prove McKenzie was responsible for 54 of the purchases, which amounted to $7378.40.

When questioned by police, the mother of three didn’t offer an explanation or deny her offending but said she could pay it back.

‘She can pay the money back now’

McKenzie’s counsel, Russell Boot, said she had managed to borrow money from family to pay the stolen money back straight away.

Boot said that was a “significant feature” and meant the EEW would not be drip-fed their owed monies.

As McKenzie had attended a restorative justice conference, pleaded guilty early, didn’t have any other criminal convictions, Boot pushed for a sentence of community work.

“The reality is, the conviction is also a significant penalty for a person.

“There was some discussion for a Section 106 [discharge without conviction] but that’s not being pursued,” Boot said.

McKenzie was employed at the moment and it was hoped her offending wouldn’t impact that, he said.

“But that’s a matter for her employer.”

Boot also added his client was only being sentenced on the $7000 amount and, if that was to increase, they would have to head to a disputed facts hearing.

‘Cynical, calculated and persistent’

Police prosecutor Brendan Mills labelled McKenzie’s offending as a gross breach of trust.

“It was deeply cynical and calculated and persistent.

“There was also a large ripple effect on staff and students. McKenzie’s offending undermines the funding integrity of those ECE centres and, as I understand it, the charitable trust which ... it puts the Government tax-payer funding at risk.

“There’s high public interest in the education sector, in particular, being protected from fraudsters.”

‘It’s not just an entity that’s been affected’

Judge Tan told McKenzie the impact of her offending “makes for sad reading”.

“In terms of things that were going on for you, but also the impact of your offending and behaviour on the centre which expands widely in terms of the wider early childhood education community.

“So it’s not simply an entity that has been impacted, but it is the children and their families and your then co-workers and those left to clean matters up.”

There was also an air of suspicion around the community in general at the time with people asking “where has the money gone”.

While it wasn’t clear why she had offended, but Judge Tan said there were “things going on” for her wider family at the time “that impacted on your poor decision making”.

Judge Tan accepted community work would be appropriate and sentenced her to 120 hours’ and ordered she pay the reparation in full immediately.

Belinda Feek is an Open Justice reporter based in Waikato. She has worked at NZME for 10 years and has been a journalist for 21.