A decorated ex-serviceman and former manager of Yarrabah’s aged-care centre, who was jailed for fraud, has had his appeal bid dismissed. James Canuto was sentenced to four years to be suspended after serving 18 months following a two day Cairns District Court trial. A jury rejected claimed that Canuto had done nothing wrong in using more than $248,000 of centre funds to buy three Toyota LandCruisers in July 2013. He kept one and gave two to two employees at the centre. Canuto had claimed the vehicles had been in lieu of unpaid services performed by him and the others. The purchases occurred while the centre, initially run by the Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire Council, was transferred over to become Mutkin Residential Aged Care. Canuto appealed the conviction on the grounds that a failure to properly direct the jury as to the use of particular evidence has resulted in a miscarriage of justice. However the Court of Appeal rejected the application finding there was no basis to set aside the jury’s guilty verdict.
