A former Australian Army interpreter and Afghan refugee has been jailed for conducting fraudulent car scams via social media to fund his gambling and drug addiction.
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Esah Naseem was sentenced to 28 months in prison with a non-parole period of 14 months, backdated to his arrest in February, when he appeared in Wollongong Local Court on Thursday.
Magistrate Claire Girotto said Naseem's crimes involved "a significant degree of planning" and dishonesty given sellers believed he was a legitimate car buyer.
The court heard Naseem and his family fled Taliban-occupied Afghanistan when Naseem was 17 years old, landing in western Sydney in 2003.
Naseem, who speaks nine languages, began working as a translator for the Afghan ambassador before taking up a job with the Australian Defence Force.
He was eventually deployed to Afghanistan to act as an interpreter for Australian troops, however returned from war just four months later after seeing colleagues die.
Magistrate Girotto noted Naseem was a "very intelligent man" and was university educated.
Naseem was married and had a daughter but then got divorced which sent him into a spiral of depression and drug and gambling addiction.
The court heard Naseem purchased cars via Facebook Marketplace or other private sale sites and told the sellers he had deposited the money into their accounts between November last year and February this year.
The vendors confirmed the cheques had been deposited, then sold the car to Naseem only to find the payment was dishonoured.
The court heard also heard Naseem's on-sold the cars despite never having owned them.
Some of the cars were recovered while others lost money for which they sought compensation.
At the height of his crime spree, Naseem was being investigated by multiple police commands in Sydney, however it was his attempts to sell a red MG station wagon to Albion Park Nissan that ultimately brought him and his co-accused undone.
Court documents said Naseem contacted the MG's owner on February 22 using a fake Facebook profile and negotiated with him to buy the car for $28,000.
Naseem agreed to transfer the money into the victim's bank but it never appeared. The victim allowed Naseem to take the car that evening after he assured the man the deal was legitimate and he'd have the money "in the next few days".
Naseem and his co-accused transferred the MG into the co-accused's name then drove it to Albion Park Nissan where they tried to sell it, however the general manager grew suspicious and contacted police.
The two men bolted as soon as they saw the officers but were arrested in the nearby Bunnings carpark.
Naseem pleaded guilty to a host of fraud, property and theft offences involving a further seven vehicles.
Magistrate Girotto noted Naseem's drug and gambling addiction, that he cared for his elderly parents but also had a criminal history.
She said he showed "some insight" into his crimes and had completed addiction programs while in custody but would need more help once released.
He was ordered to pay four car owners more than $46,000 in compensation. Naseem will be eligible for release to parole in April next year.
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