After defrauding his victims of more than $1 million in hard-earned superannuation, a NSW real estate agent will remain on bail ahead of his sentencing later this year.
Daniel Leslie Harris convinced his victims to roll their superannuation into a self-managed super fund from which he would withdraw the money for use in investment property.
The 46-year-old was found guilty of 115 counts of obtaining a financial advantage by deception on Friday after a four-month long jury trial at Sydney's Downing Centre District Court.
Crown prosecutors said that over eight years he had targeted vulnerable, unsophisticated investors and had deceived them by saying there was a unit trust and trustee taking care of the money used for the investment property.
In reality, the Yarrahapinni man was bankrupt, there was no trust or trustee and more than $1 million was lost and never recovered.
On Wednesday, Judge Leonie Flannery said she would likely find that Harris' "misguided" motive, despite being bankrupt, was that the scheme was a good one that could make him and his investors money.
The judge rejected a detention application by crown prosecutor Giles Tabuteau after learning that Harris would have to take care of his aging father before a sentence hearing on November 3.
His 72-year-old wheelchair-bound father had Parkinson's, dementia and poor eyesight and his elderly mother could not take care of him on her own.
The family was trying to sell an investment property at Yarrahapinni, near the NSW mid-north coast town of Kempsey, so they could put his father in a care facility.
Defence barrister Todd Pickering said his client would also be required to take care of the family's 115-acre cattle farm before a professional stockman could be hired, and help get the investment property ready for sale before he was sentenced.
"The physical work is beyond the capacity of his mother who’s some 70 years of age,” Mr Pickering said.
Judge Flannery found this amounted to special circumstances which warranted Harris keeping his freedom before sentencing.
The real estate agent broke down in tears while in the dock as he realised he did not yet have to go to jail.
However, Judge Flannery warned that this outcome was inevitable.
“Mr Harris, you are not to take from that that you will not be going to jail, do you understand?” the judge asked.
"Yes, Your Honour," he replied.
His supporters hugged each other outside the courtroom after the decision.
