A Concord car dealer has been sentenced to 12 months in prison and ordered to pay $246,000 in compensation to three clients, for two offences of fraudulent appropriation relating to money received from the sale of cars.
Mr Nicholas Agar was convicted and sentenced by the Parramatta Local Court on 12 July 2019 for the offences and later appealed to the District Court. On 4 September 2019, the District Court dismissed the appeal and confirmed the sentence.
Mr Agar was the sole director of DBN Holdings Australia Pty Ltd, trading as Sports Auto Group. He was also the general manager of Avant Automotive Pty Ltd, which traded as Autoline Sydney. The companies operated from the same premises at Parramatta Road, Concord.
NSW Fair Trading Commissioner Ms Rose Webb welcomed the outcome which is the result of a thorough investigation into the defendant and his businesses.
“In March 2017, NSW Fair Trading investigators and NSW Police, executed a search warrant at the Concord business premises, and seized documents and computers,” Ms Webb said.
NSW Fair Trading suspended the motor dealer licence of Avant Automotive the same day as the search, and a month later the licence was cancelled and permanently disqualified.
One charge concerned events in 2016, when Mr Agar agreed to sell a client’s Nissan GT-R Premium and estimated its value at $130,000. After selling the vehicle, Mr Agar stopped responding to his client. His client did not receive any money from the sale.
“Mr Agar accepted payments which did not make it into the hands of his trusting clients, despite his contractual obligations to them.
“This is a great result for the consumers who went into business with Mr Agar and didn’t see anything in return. It should also serve as a reminder that NSW Fair Trading is serious about car dealers, and any business, looking to defraud their customers,” Ms Webb said.
The court also ordered Mr Agar to pay $22,880 in legal costs.
