A Sydney socialite who admitted to falsifying her company’s books while working for an elite circle of clients, before her company went bust, wiped away tears as she learnt her fate.
For years Adriana Benhamou Weiss was a fixture on Sydney’s social scene, with the glamorous interior designer travelling the world, attending high-profile events and rubbing shoulders with elite clients.
But it all changed in July 2018 when her business, Benhamou Designs Pty Ltd, began to crumble and went into liquidation.
Weiss in June pleaded guilty to six charges of falsifying, concealing and destroying the company’s books between August and September 2016.
The glamorous socialite faced the NSW District Court on Friday dressed in black stilettos and a black blazer for sentence.
Judge William Fitzsimmons told the court Weiss, as the director of the business, entered into an agreement to construct a new office space and home office in Sydney.
Work started immediately on the project but the building company quickly revealed it had never received payment for the demolition.
The court was told the 40-year-old ordered a junior employee to Photoshop fake NAB payment confirmation receipts, showing transactions from her business to suppliers and contractors which were false.
She also took money which clients had paid her for work and put them on her personal credit card.
Judge Fitzsimmons told the court the junior staffer said it was her first job out of uni and she felt “compelled” to complete the work for her boss.
“She procured a young employee to engage in the conduct, which makes it more serious,” he said.
“They were elaborate forgeries of official NAB documents which she presented in an effort to deceive others.”
The court was told that during the period of offending, Benhamou Designs had an intake of $360,450 from clients.
Court documents revealed about $156,000 had been funnelled straight into Weiss’ personal credit card and was spent on hotels, clothes and other personal items.
She had told her psychologist at the time the offending was a result of “cashflow problems” from clients “not paying” their bills, Judge Fitzsimmons said.
The court heard Weiss was suffering from chronic stress in response to pressure over a long period at the time of the offending, as she “felt responsible for her staff and her children”.
“She felt overwhelmed, dreaded nights and lost her world,” Judge Fitzsimmons said.
The judge said Weiss’ conduct was “elaborate and calculated” as she had enlisted the services of a young employee who was “vulnerable and susceptible” to perform tasks of her employer.
“Her role was the first job since completing her studies and she considered it was appropriate; she said if she refused to do it, she would not have been given projects and would’ve been treated differently,” Judge Fitzsimmons said.
He said the offending is more serious than if Weiss had done it alone.
The judge said Weiss had attempted to avoid accountability after substantial funds were paid to her business in good faith.
Weiss was sentenced to an aggregate term of imprisonment for 10 months but was immediately released on a recognisance release order on the condition she is of good behaviour for 18 months and pays a fine of $20,000.
In a statement, Weiss apologised to everyone “affected by” her conduct.
“I am grateful to the Court for acknowledging my personal circumstances in its sentencing today,” she said.
“I am committed to moving forward both personally and professionally with positivity and gratitude.”
