Fired school board manager Derek Newhook appeals convictions for fraud, breach of trust

A former manager with the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District has appealed his convictions for fraud and breach of trust.

Derek Newhook wants the Court of Appeal to enter an acquittal or order a new trial.

Newhook was found guilty this summer on two counts of fraud and one count of breach of trust by a public officer.

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His trial took place over 15 days at provincial court in Grand Bank.

In documents filed at the Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal last month, Newhook said the verdicts are "unreasonable and cannot be supported by the evidence."

• Read the sentencing decision in R v. Newhook
• Read the trial decision in R v. Newhook

Judge Harold Porter found that Newhook, while employed as regional operations manager for the school board, had bus depot employees make a trailer and a shed.

The trailer had a licence plate in Newhook's name and was moved to a friend's equipment yard.

"Two years later, the shed and trailer were still on [the friend's] lot, out of reach of the school board," Porter wrote in his sentencing decision.

"This was dishonest deprivation, which in law is fraud."

The breach of trust conviction related to directing school board employees to install a lift kit and "moose lights" on a truck belonging to a friend of Newhook.

He received a suspended sentence, a year of probation, and was ordered to pay restitution of about $4,000.

15 other fraud charges were dismissed

Another 15 fraud counts against Newhook were dismissed.

"It appeared from the evidence that the depot allowed the school board employees, including the accused, to service their own vehicles in the depot garage," Porter wrote in his decision. "There was an underlying current of resentment towards the accused by some witnesses, who worked in the school board depot.

"Some of those other employees took photographs of what they considered to be evidence of misconduct or mismanagement by the accused. It was clear that the depot did not exercise hard and fast rules about having employees do work on their private vehicles in the depot garage."

Newhook has until January to file documentation insupport of his appeal.

The Crown then gets 30 days to respond, before a date can be set for the matter to proceed.

Newhook was fired by the school board shortly before charges were laid in early 2016.

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