A contractor has been sentenced to jail for bribing a public servant in WA. 

Sixty-nine-year-old contractor Peter Russell Haxby has been sentenced to jail for orchestrating a bribery scheme that involved a West Australian public servant. 

The plot revolved around securing government contracts, amounting to $1.1 million, for crucial social housing projects.

Haxby admitted to paying the public servant around $122,500 over six years in return for securing contracts administered by the Department of Communities.

The court learned that the bribery proposition originated with the public servant back in 2014, where an arrangement was struck: Haxby would remit 10 per cent of each contract's value to the public servant.

While Haxby managed to secure 16 contracts through this unethical exchange, he lost opportunities on 27 other projects.

Haxby faced charges following a comprehensive investigation by the Corruption and Crime Commission (CCC) and later pleaded guilty to charges of bribery and benefiting unlawfully.

One of the charges was linked to Haxby receiving $4,000 in government funds after the public servant designated him as a “back-up supervisor” for a project initially awarded to a different firm.

The District Court unveiled another layer of deceit when it was disclosed that Haxby invoiced the department for attending an August 2018 meeting he never attended, marking another facet of his fraudulent activities.

While acknowledging Haxby's contrition, Judge Belinda Lonsdale pointed out that his actions represented a deliberate and sustained pattern of dishonest behaviour. 

Haxby's actions had a corrosive effect on public trust in governmental institutions, a fact underlined by the Judge's assertion that his actions might have compromised the quality of his work.

Haxby's cooperation in the investigation, repayment of $105,000 to the department, and forfeiting an additional $17,000 he was owed were all taken into account by the judge.

Despite efforts by Haxby's defence attorney to secure a suspended jail term, Judge Lonsdale stated that the gravity of the offences precluded any option other than immediate imprisonment. 

Ultimately, Haxby was handed a 16-month jail term, factoring in his early guilty pleas and cooperation. He will be eligible for parole after serving half of the term.

The public servant involved has also been charged in connection with this case and has expressed an intention to plead not guilty.