Jason Mark Spencer: Trusted worker who gambled more than $400,000 of his bosses’ money jailed

A trusted worker who kept using his bosses’ credit card to gamble even after being found out, splashing a whopping $413,182 on bets, has been sent behind bars. When a colleague discovered back in December 2017 that Jason Mark Spencer had been punting with Ladbrokes on their employer’s dime, the father-of-two lied, claiming he was doing it on the bosses’ behalf. But Spencer persisted until May 2019, convinced he could win and pay back the money. “I accept that that thought was sincere on your behalf, because it’s consistent with what you were doing,” District Court of WA Judge David MacLean said. “You were using the company’s corporate card, losing a lot, winning a bit and paying back the company some of your winnings.” The 54-year-old returned $290,686, leaving the small firm with a $122,496 loss. His belief he would come out on top from the gambling was the “hallmark of an addiction”, the judge said. He was among only a handful of the company’s employees who had credit card access and was able to deflect questions about the transactions “by reason of your trusted position and by reason of your capacity to charm others”, Judge MacLean said. “You were able to craft a convincing lie ... the breach of trust was of a high level,” he said. The offending had a significant impact on the business, including an emotional toll, with colleagues he duped feeling shame, the judge said. He accepted Spencer hoped to repay the outstanding sum, but that was “aspirational”, with no demonstrated efforts so far. Judge MacLean sentenced him to two years and 10 months in jail, with eligibility for parole after serving half.