The Court of Appeal held that a total effective sentence of 12 years' imprisonment for three counts of fraud involving $71 million in pecuniary benefit did not infringe the first limb of the totality principle, notwithstanding that the maximum penalty per count was 7 years. The Court confirmed that the extraordinary scale of the benefit obtained and the loss suffered ($7.75 million) are integral to assessing overall criminality and cannot be set aside in the comparative exercise. The Court reiterated that in white-collar fraud, general deterrence is the dominant sentencing consideration, moderating the mitigating weight of favourable personal circumstances including prior good character, remorse, and absence of a greed motive.
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