Guy Sebastian‘s former manager Titus Day has been sentenced to jail after being found guilty of embezzling $600k from the singer.
The 49-year-old was sentenced by District Court Judge Tim Gartelmann to four years in jail with a two-year, six-month non-parole period and was ordered to pay more than $620,000 in restitution to Sebastian.
After the court proceedings on November 18, Day was led away in handcuffs.
“All [the offences] were committed for financial gain,” Judge Gartelmann said. “Though this is inherent in offences of this kind. The offender used the money for other than Mr Sebastian’s benefit.”
What Happened Between Titus Day and Guy Sebastian?
The former colleagues had been embroiled in a mammoth court case after Sebastian discovered funds had gone missing across his decade-spanning partnership with Day.
On July 1, the New South Wales District Court found Day guilty of more than 30 charges; however, he was acquitted of others.
This follows a ruling on May 9 that saw Day found not guilty on three counts, with 47 other embezzlement charges still to be considered at the time.
Before the verdict was cast, the case had been interrupted several times due to numerous significant occurrences, including the death of its first judge, Peter Zahra SC, and jurors falling ill.
Sebastian also contracted COVID-19 during proceedings.
Speaking out after the initial guilty verdict on July 1, Sebastian said it was “shocking” to learn of the extent to which Day “betrayed” him.
“It was not only shocking but heartbreaking to discover the depth of betrayal and dishonesty that I uncovered over these last four-and-a-half-years,” he wrote on Instagram.
“There’s nothing more important than trust in an artist/manager relationship. The thing is, Titus was more than just my manager; he was one of my closest mates.”
The singer also said the proceedings were “tougher” than he anticipated and often felt at times that he was the one on trial “rather than the victim”.
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