Christchurch man jailed for Wage Subsidy Fraud

Nathan Iles, 40 pleaded guilty to five individual charges and one additional representative charge of dishonestly using a document in relation to 28 fraudulent wage subsidy applications submitted between April 2020 and August 2021.

Iles submitted applications under his own name and the names of four businesses and several individuals.

This included a company he previously ran that was no longer in operation, and the identities of others he had stolen in order to make the applications. None of the businesses were operating legitimately at the time, and no employees were paid.

Five of the applications were successful, resulting in a total of $30,461.60 being paid into accounts controlled by Iles.

The funds were used for personal expenses, including online gambling. A further 23 applications, which could have resulted in an additional $122,281.60, were declined.

Reparations of $5,000 were also granted to MSD. 

A total of 49 people have been sentenced in wage subsidy cases, and another 53 people are still before the courts as part of MSD’s programme of work on wage subsidy fraud and integrity. Since the scheme started, more than $830 million* in wage subsidies has been repaid. For more information about the Wage Subsidy Integrity and Fraud Programme please see here. 

*Figures as at 19 September