A man who swindled a soccer club out of more than $23,000 enjoyed "a few months of lavish living", while "years of anguish" continue for the organisation, a court has heard.
Aaron David Alexander, aged in his early 50s, faced the start of sentencing proceedings in the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday.
After a protracted legal saga, Alexander, a former president of Gungahlin United Football Club, was found guilty of stealing more than $23,546 from the non-profit.
The 48 counts of theft occurred over more than seven months between December 2017 and July 2018.
A victim impact statement, tendered to court on behalf of the club on Monday, said the crimes not only resulted in financial hardship but had "a profound impact on the mental wellbeing of volunteers and their families".
The club has "lost face" with its "name in tatters" and volunteers subject to abuse, the statement said.
"For the people that took him into their friendship and trusted his business acumen, believing he was going to move the club forward financially, the dishonesty, theft and lack of integrity hit hard.
"For the people who uncovered the truth, who blew the whistle, who stood up in court to give evidence and for those who worked behind the scenes, there's the constant 'looking over the shoulder' due to fear of real and physical danger that he may soon be free to walk among us again with an axe to grind.
"While his theft may have provided him with a few months of lavish living, it has created years on anguish for the club he betrayed."
The court heard Alexander now lives at Mount Fairy in NSW, where he works for his landlord to cover accommodation and groceries.
Prosecutor Marcus Dyason argued there was a higher level of trust given to volunteers at community groups.
Mr Dyason told the court the "notion of [Alexander's] financial prowess" caused club members to "invite him in" as president.
Legal Aid lawyer Edward Chen argued there was no evidence of his client "living a lavish lifestyle".
The court heard Alexander bought himself a new Land Rover Defender with the stolen money, but Mr Chen argued it was "certainly not a Ferrari or anything like that".
"Suddenly an opportunity arose and he capitalised on it. There was very limited planning," Mr Chen said.
"Some of the charges involved tapping of a bank card, others were bank transfers."
The defence lawyer told the court Alexander's assets had been frozen, he had been unemployed since 2020, and he had spent some nights sleeping in his car.
"He has lived a very humble life for the past four years and likely will continue to do so," Mr Chen said.
The lawyer also claimed Alexander, a US citizen, was at risk of deportation.
Magistrate Glenn Theakston is set to hand down his sentence later this week.
