stock manipulator evades jail term

TAMARA Newing, daughter of former Genetic Technologies chief executive Dr Mervyn Jacobson, has been given a suspended 21 month jail sentence after pleading guilty to ten counts of market manipulation.

Mrs Newing, of Hawthorn East in Victoria, was released on Friday on a recognisance order but was told by Judge Cotterell in the County court that had she not pleaded guilty, she would have been sentenced to two years' jail, of which six months would have had to be served immediately.

The sentence followed an investigation by ASIC into Mrs Newing's involvement in the trading of Genetic Technologies Limited (GTG) shares between 18 April 2005 and 2 November 2006.

During this period Mrs Newing took part in transactions involving purchases of more than 5.9 million GTG shares carried out through share trading accounts held in her name, and in the names of companies related to her father and her husband Mr Geoffrey Newingm, the former chief operating officer of GTG, called XY Inc. and Palamine Pty Ltd.

Mr Newing had previously pleaded guilty to five counts of market manipulation and was sentenced to 22 months' imprisonment with a minimum period to serve of six months.

In February 2009, three former client advisers at ABN Amro and Tolhurst Ltd were given suspended sentences in the County Court of Victoria after pleading guilty to market manipulation charges in relation to trading in GTG shares.

Andrew Main From: The Australian February 23, 2011 2:49PM