MP jailed for misleading kickback probe, then bailed
Jack Gramenz |
A high-profile ex-MP has been jailed for 10 months for misleading a corruption probe about potential profits from a major property deal.
But former NSW MP Daryl Maguire only spent about an hour in custody before being granted bail to appeal the sentence handed out on Wednesday.
The man best known for his secret relationship with Gladys Berejiklian while she was state premier declined to comment as he left Sydney’s Central Local Court.
The 66-year-old was found guilty in June of giving misleading evidence at a 2018 Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry into a Sydney council.
The misleading evidence canvassed Maguire’s dealings with former Canterbury City councillor Michael Hawatt on a potential property development, in which Maguire could have received about $720,000 in commission.
“His evidence – there was nothing in it for him – was misleading,” Sydney magistrate Clare Farnan said when sentencing Maguire.
“In fact, he expected to receive part of a commission if the property was sold.”
Ms Farnan said it was difficult to determine the long-time Wagga Wagga MP’s motivation because Maguire maintained his innocence and did not give reasons about why he gave the misleading evidence.
“Mr Maguire was clearly trying to protect his reputation, possibly amongst other things,” she said.
Maguire has not demonstrated remorse, the magistrate said.
But she found he had good prospects of rehabilitation and was unlikely to reoffend.
Former deputy prime minister Michael McCormack, whose federal electorate overlaps with the area Maguire long represented in state parliament, provided a letter of support for the former Liberal MP.
He told the court of Maguire’s hard work ethic and ongoing efforts to benefit the community.
The full contents of the letter have not yet been released by the court.
Ms Farnan said she would have ordered Maguire serve 12 months but for an almost five-year delay in prosecuting the offence.
Maguire was taken downstairs from the courtroom after being sentenced on Wednesday morning.
He was brought back up from the cells not long after paperwork was filed to appeal the guilty finding and subsequent sentence.
Ms Farnan noted it was difficult to assess the prospects of Maguire’s appeal against findings she had made.
“Obviously, I think I made the right decision but that doesn’t mean that a District Court judge might not take a different view,” she said.
Ms Farnan granted Maguire bail, noting the five-month non-parole period she’s ordered Maguire serve may have expired before the appeal could be heard.
Maguire entered parliament in 1999 and held parliamentary secretary and whip positions in NSW coalition governments before retiring in 2018.
He made headlines in 2020 when it emerged he had been in a secret “close personal relationship” for at least five years with Ms Berejiklian while she was treasurer and then premier.
AAP
