McInerheney pleaded guilty to 30 counts of obtaining property by deception between December 2008 and March 2009 while he worked with Centrelink in Adelaide.

Imposing the sentence in the South Australian District Court on Thursday, Chief Judge Terry Worthington described McInerheney's offending as an elaborate scam.

The 33-year-old devised a scheme to make payments using electronic benefit transfers, which are cards used by Centrelink staff to make one-off emergency payments to customers requiring urgent financial assistance.

The cards come with a PIN and can be cashed at any bank ATM.

"You took careful steps to avoid detection," Judge Worthington told McInerheney.

"It is very serious offending involving gross breaches of trust on a sustained basis."

The judge said McInerheney's offending was prompted by a severe gambling problem with the man's total losses estimated at about $500,000.

He imposed a four-year jail sentence with an 18-month non-parole period.

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http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/centrelink-worker-set-up-fake-accounts-20100415-sgz6.html