WA woman loses appeal over $1.1m theft

A former finance manager who stole more than $1.1 million from a Perth construction company to fund her lavish lifestyle has lost an appeal against her conviction.

Annabelle Martincic made transfers with false descriptions from the bank accounts of M3 Building and Construction into four other accounts linked to herself or her partner, between January 2014 and April 2016.

Last year, a West Australian District Court jury found her guilty of 185 counts of stealing and she was sentenced to six years behind bars.

The mother of three took her case to the WA Court of Appeal, claiming the trial judge made an error that caused a miscarriage of justice but on Friday the matter was thrown out.

Martincic had worked voluntarily as a finance and administration manager for the residential home builder because she was in a relationship with one of the directors.

The fruits of Martincic's crime supported her lifestyle, including a $2.7 million house in affluent Applecross.

Her scheme unravelled when creditors began chasing the directors for payment of outstanding invoices.

M3 was placed into voluntary administration in August 2016.

Last year, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission announced it had permanently banned Martincic from providing financial services and credit activities.