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Jonathan Richard Kirkpatrick in Auckland District Court - Source: Fairfax -
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A former high-ranking Anglican figure will plead guilty to $666,000 of fraud from Auckland University of Technology where he was head of the business innovation centre.
Jonathan Richard Kirkpatrick, 53, former Dean of Dunedin's Cathedral and former lover of ex-MP Tim Barnett, has been charged with 82 counts of making false invoices in the names of Halsey Consulting, Business Custom Solutions and Eventure.
Outside the Auckland District Court yesterday, Kirkpatrick said he intended to plead guilty.
A supporter, who was picking up the bailed churchman, said Kirkpatrick often said to her, "Sometimes I don't know who I am anymore."
Interviewed outside court, Kirkpatrick would not apologise for the massive fraud, saying it was best saved for court where he will reappear in two weeks to formally admit his guilt.
"I'm intrigued as much as I'm scared of the whole thing," he said.
"I'm not looking forward to it."
He said he did not want it to drag on and he wanted it over.
The court appearance was brief with Kirkpatrick leaning on the dock and smiling at the cameras.
His lawyer Russell Fairbrother told the court his client "takes full responsibility for his actions"'.
Court documents showed the large scale of the fraud, which stretched back to 2002 soon after Kirkpatrick got the job.
He was also charged with two counts relating to, while being an employee, making entries in AUT's accounting system Epicor to obtain benefit for himself.
Kirkpatrick was arrested yesterday morning.
He resigned from his role as chief executive of AUT's business innovation centre after large sums of money were discovered missing from research and development funds last week.
AUT took a civil case against Kirkpatrick to the High Court last week, understood to be an application to freeze his assets.
AUT would not confirm how much money went missing but it was initially believed to be around $500,000.
In a statement issued to students, vice-chancellor Derek McCormack said: "AUT has discovered some apparent accounting discrepancies.
"The discrepancies relate to money in the research and development field, and is not derived from student fees. Nevertheless, AUT is largely a student and taxpayer-funded organisation and remains accountable to the highest accounting standards.''
The two-week adjournment is understood to be so that auditors can double check that they have discovered all missing monies.
Kirkpatrick was a Reverend and Priest in Charge at St Alban's Church in Balmoral, in central Auckland, where his assistant priest was Reverend Philip
Sallis, who is also the Pro Vice Chancellor of AUT.
An Anglican spokesman has confirmed he no longer holds a position in the church and AUT said: "There are no indications that anyone else is involved."
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