Prosecutors have called for a woman who forged documents to secure lower rent and faked qualifications to be jailed for five years at a hearing yesterday.

Maria Bento, 49, pleaded guilty last year to charges of evasion of liability by deception, forgery and obtaining a money transfer by deception.

Cindy Clarke, the Director of Public Prosecutions, said that Bento had been employed as the residential property manager for the West End Development Corporation.

She said that Bento was also a Wedco tenant, having moved into a property owned by the quango in October 2017.

However, in early 2021 an internal audit discovered that while she should have paid $117,000 in rent to the quango, she had actually paid only $11,047.28.

Ms Clarke said that Bento had submitted a series of residential accounts adjustment forms that indicated that her rent had been reduced without authorisation.

The audit uncovered several documents that appeared to bear the signature of Wedco’s chief financial officer or the quango’s business development manager, both of whom asserted that they had not signed the documents.

In addition to residential account adjustment forms, the documents included notes that indicated Bento would receive reduced rent because of a termite infestation at her home.

Ms Clarke said Bento had also provided Wedco with documents highlighting courses she had taken at several institutions in Britain, including Bristol University and the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives.

“These documents indicate that the defendant had completed courses of study with these institutions with a passing grade,” Ms Clarke said.

The court heard that Wedco had transferred $16,334.09 to Bento’s bank account to reimburse her for the courses. However, investigators found that none of the institutions had any record of Bento enrolled in any courses with them.

Ms Clarke said that between December 2017 and February 2021, Bento had paid less than 10 per cent of what she was supposed to pay to Wedco and had abused her position of trust within the quango.

“As a residential manager for Wedco, the defendant was herself responsible for protecting the company’s, and thereby the state’s, revenue by dealing with delinquent tenants,” she said.

“The defendant abused her managerial role, sustaining an unjustifiable course of deception to obtain a personal benefit.”

She added that Bento had brazenly exploited an initiative intended to help government employees by fabricating a range of documents to claim qualifications she did not have as well as get reimbursement for classes she never took.

Ms Clarke also raised concerns about the level of responsibility accepted by Bento based on comments she had made in a social inquiry report.

In all the circumstances, she argued that a five-year period of imprisonment would be appropriate.

Jerome Lynch KC, for Bento, said that some or all of the sentence should be suspended.

He told the court that the defendant was “in a state of denial” but accepted responsibility through her guilty plea.

“She finds it frankly astonishing that she allowed herself to get where she is,” he said. ”This has been difficult for her, her family, her community.“

Mr Lynch said that the actions were completely out of character, noting that Bento has no previous convictions and those who spoke to report writers said she was a “loving, kind and helpful person”.

He told the court that the complaints about termites at the home were based in truth, stating that Wedco had spent $30,000 to address the issue while she was living on the property.

Mr Lynch also urged the court to consider not only concerns about Bento’s health, but long-lasting medical issues faced by a family member whom she would be less able to support from behind bars.

He told the court that while Bento was not able to repay the full sum owed in the case, she would be able to provide $25,000 and others had pledged to help her provide more.

“They are contingent on her ability to repay them, which is contingent on her ability to work,” Mr Lynch said.

Speaking on her own behalf, Bento apologised to her friends and family for the “drama” that she had caused.

“My trust in people has gone,” she said. “What or who I thought I could trust, I cannot. That’s why I’m in this situation.”

Puisne Judge Juan Wolffe reserved his decision on the case, with the final sentence expected to be delivered in March.

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