A Melbourne topless barmaid used money stolen from a couple’s dream retirement property to buy gold bullion in a lavish spending spree.
Nicola Harrington, 30, was sentenced to nine months in jail at Melbourne County Court on Friday after admitting she had negligently handled the proceeds of crime.
Proceedings began amid tension when Harrington asked to sit in the dock with a support person, while her lawyers made a last-minute application seeking to suppress details of the case.
The request drew a sharp response from County Court judge Frank Gucciardo.
“I’m most unimpressed that it’s sought to be made now,” Judge Gucciardo said.
“I’m not going to hear that application.”
The judge also cautioned Harrington’s legal team after she was seen crying outside the courtroom, making clear that emotional outbursts would not be accepted during the hearing.
“It’s important to understand she has to maintain some decorum in the court,” he said.
Nicola Harrington, 30, received a nine-month jail sentence at Melbourne County Court after pleading guilty to negligently dealing with criminal proceeds
Harrington, pictured right, arrived at court alongside her mother
Harrington appeared startled after noticing a Daily Mail photographer
Harrington’s spending spree began after $749,636, allegedly diverted by an unknown person or group, reached her account.
The money had been stolen from a couple, who have not been named, as they prepared to complete the purchase of their ideal retirement home in St Leonards on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula.
In July 2023, scammers sent the couple a fraudulent email directing them to transfer the outstanding $749,636 property balance into a Commonwealth Bank account.
The couple only realised something was wrong when their conveyancer called to say the settlement funds had not arrived.
The female victim immediately contacted her bank, which recovered $365,912, followed by a further $95,575.
But $383,721 was not recovered at that stage and ultimately came into Harrington’s possession.
Harrington, a former hairdresser who worked as a topless barmaid, withdrew $2,000 in cash in July 2023 before buying two one-kilogram gold bullion bars with a combined value of $189,280.
She collected the precious metal from Ainslie Gold Bullion on Collins Street in central Melbourne.
The scam left $383,721 in Harrington’s hands, prompting a rapid and extravagant spending spree
The court heard Harrington spoke to a staff member and had to produce her learner driver licence before she was handed the gold.
Harrington also transferred a further $2,000 to herself for ‘rent’, and ‘approved’ a $49,866 bank transfer to an individual named ‘Cengizhan Cengiz’, the court was told.
She also transferred $45,000 to a ‘Serkan Cem’.
Harrington’s jig was up when she attempted to purchase a 1kg gold bullion bar worth $95,575 from Sharma Bullion Pty Ltd at Swanston Street on July 25, 2023.
The grifter was unable to complete the purchase because the Commonwealth Bank had frozen her funds.
Police raided Harrington’s Melbourne home on December 13, 2023, before she was arrested and interviewed.
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Harrington, who pleaded guilty to negligently dealing with proceeds of crime, gave a mostly ‘no comment’ interview.
Harrington was emotional before her sentencing
The couple and their son all gave victim impact statements to the court.
They spoke of how Harrington ruined the ‘sacrifice’ and long-term planning they made to achieve their dream seaside retirement.
The victims also said they felt ‘violated’ and worried after their money was stolen.
‘I felt embarrassed at having been scammed in this way,’ one of the victims said.
The victim added they were also ‘afraid to tell friends’ what had happened.
The second victim said they withdrew from social circles as they wrestled with maintaining ‘non-disclosure’ of the crime committed against them.
The victims’ son also spoke of the ‘hopelessness and guilt’ the crime had inflicted on the family.
‘[My parents] well-earned retirement was replaced with severe trauma and heartache,’ the son said.
He also said the crime was ‘profoundly crushing for his parents’ and their ‘dream was in ruins’.
Judge Gucciardo said the ‘objective seriousness’ of Harrington’s offending was ‘high’ and she was a ‘principal’ player in the racket.
‘Your role was essential in dealing with the funds,’ Judge Gucciardo said.
Judge Gucciardo also said Harrington was ‘clearly alive’ to the dodgy cash and she knew ‘criminality was likely involved’.
However, Judge Gucciardo said Harrington was likely hooked into the crooked scheme by an ‘older, dominant partner’.
‘I am not persuaded that you were forced. Your role was essential in the success of the criminal scheme,’ Judge Gucciardo said.
Harrington worked as a topless barmaid
Judge Gucciardo labelled Harrington ‘young, dumb and naïve’ after an ex told her he needed money to bankroll his grand plans to build a villa in Bali.
The court heard the ex was a Turkish man who worked in nightclub security and the construction industry.
It was also revealed another person had asked Harrington to ‘conceal funds in a divorce’.
Harrington worked as a hairdresser after leaving school but then became a topless waitress at the end of 2020 which led her to live a ‘lifestyle of partying and substance abuse’.
She abused alcohol, ecstasy, cocaine and prescription medication, including Valium and Stilnox, and previously overdosed on Xanax.
Harrington left her stripper job but returned to the topless barmaid trade to help pay off her legal fees, the court was told.
‘It’s clear you’ve not yet learned from the mistakes of your past,’ Judge Gucciardo said.
Harrington broke down crying when Judge Gucciardo told her he would be locking her up before sentencing her to a nine-month jail term.