The case was referred to the SFO after Sacred Hill Vineyards went into receivership in 2021. File photo.
Photo: Supplied
Eighteen false accounting charges have been filed by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) against a former executive and director at Sacred Hill Vineyards.
Richard Foddy appeared in the Hastings District Court on Tuesday and is alleged to have overstated the value of the company’s inventory in order to secure funding.
The SFO says the alleged offending took place between June 2017 and June 2019.
Foddy is alleged to have artificially increased the value of Sacred Hill Vineyards’ wine inventory in quarterly stock valuation spreadsheets and on compliance certificates provided to lender Westpac.
The case was referred to the SFO by receiver BDO Auckland, after Sacred Hill Vineyards and Sacred Hill Marlborough Vineyards went into receivership in May 2021.
The Sacred Hill brand continues to trade in the wine industry under new ownership, after Sacred Hill’s Hawke’s Bay business interests were sold in November 2021.
SFO director Karen Chang said: “New Zealand’s economic strength relies heavily on its trade industries. Corporate fraud that undermines key sectors, such as viticulture, poses a direct risk to our economy, our productivity.”
“The SFO will continue to treat these cases as a priority,” Chang said.
Foddy is next scheduled to appear on 23 June.
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