12 October 2023

Western Australia (WA) Consumer Protection has reported the state’s first case involving the jailing of a former property manager for trust account fraud. After being found to have unlawfully stolen over $140,000 in trust account funds, the agent has been sentenced to serve thirteen months in prison.

It was determined that the agent had made 141 unauthorised withdrawals from client trust accounts totalling $140,744.37, between the years 2020 and 2022.

This prosecution was enabled under amendments made to the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978 in January 2020, when the penalty for trust account fraud was increased to a fine of $25,000 – or two years’ imprisonment. Previously, the penalty for this type of offence in WA was a maximum fine of $3,000.

Consumer Protection reports on the issue as follows:

Consumer Protection prosecution lands jail term for property manager (Linda Ngapera)

• WA-first case of unauthorised trust account withdrawals brings prison sentence

• Over $140,000 funnelled into personal accounts

• Real estate and settlement industries on notice

In a first-of-its-kind sentence in Western Australia, a former North Perth real estate property manager has been convicted of unlawfully taking over $140,000 from trust accounts and sentenced to over 12 months jail time.

Consumer Protection Commissioner Trish Blake successfully led the action under the Real Estate and Business Agents (REBA) Act, and says the custodial sentence is evidence that Consumer Protection will do everything in its power to protect the WA community.

“This case sends a very strong message to industry and community that Consumer Protection will not hesitate to take action and the Courts will not tolerate behaviour like unlawfully taking client moneys from an agent’s trust account,” Ms Blake said.

“Be warned. Consumer Protection will take action within the real estate and settlement industries and will seek imprisonment.    

“If you take moneys from an account that does not belong to you, you could go to jail.”

Ms Linda Margaret Ngapera worked for a North Perth real estate agency for 10 years. Between 2020 and 2022, she made 141 unauthorised withdrawals from client trust accounts totalling $140,744.37. She pleaded guilty to all 141 charges in the Magistrates Court of Western Australia on 3 October 2023 and was sentenced to one year and one month imprisonment, along with court costs of $716.30.

Magistrate Sullivan suspended the jail term for two years, noting Ms Ngapera’s early guilty plea and the fact that “the funds were not withdrawn for holidays or living a life of luxury, it was applied to deal with difficult family circumstances”. Ms Ngapera admitted to making the withdrawals and has been working towards repaying the full amount to the real estate agent.

Prior to 1 January 2020, the penalty for this type of offence in WA was a maximum fine of $3,000. Consumer Protection sought approval from the WA Parliament to change this penalty to become a fine of $25,000 – or two-years’ imprisonment, given the significant impact this type of illegal activity has on the clients of an agency, as well as the agent themselves.

Commissioner Blake said Consumer Protection has had these types of cases previously before the court, but that this is the first case in which imprisonment has been imposed since the 2020 amendments to the REBA Act. 

“Ms Ngapera was in a position of trust, and she abused that trust,” Ms Blake said.

“She also put the agent in a difficult financial position, as they had to repay the missing moneys to balance the trust account so that clients were not disadvantaged by her actions.

“While it is sad that Ms Ngapera felt compelled to take moneys that did not belong to her in difficult family circumstances, this does not excuse her actions and the Courts agreed that this type of offending deserves a period of imprisonment. 

“I am pleased the Courts have acted in this way, which will strongly deter others from considering this type of breach of trust going forward.”

Ms Ngapera has voluntarily surrendered her sales representative registration.

Complaints about any real estate agent, property manager or sales representative can be made on the Consumer Protection website at www.consumerprotection.wa.gov.au, by emailing consumer@dmirs.wa.gov.au or by calling 1300 30 40 54.