Case Reports
2025
On 20 December 2024, Brett Trevillian was convicted and sentenced in the NSW District Court to three years’ imprisonment, to be served by way of an intensive correction order, following a plea of guilty to two charges of making a false document to obtain a financial advantage, contrary to s 253(b)(ii) of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW).
2024
A former protective services officer, Daniel Robert David Jones, made false declarations in relation to an application for a security clearance required to work for the Australian Federal Police. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth) (CDPP) prosecuted Mr Jones and on 15 July 2024 he pleaded guilty to and was sentenced in the ACT Magistrates Court.
On 2 September 2024, Tony Iervasi was sentenced in the New South Wales Supreme Court to 11 years’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of seven years. This followed a plea of guilty to four counts of engaging in dishonest conduct in relation to a financial product or financial service and one count of carrying on an unlicensed financial services business, contrary to ss 1041G and 911A of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (Corporations Act) respectively.
On 3 November 2021, Ms Tahra Wyntjes registered herself as a sole trader for a business purportedly providing cleaning services. Between 17 November 2021 and 11 March 2022, she lodged 27 false Business Activity Statements (BAS) with the ATO, comprising eight original BAS and 19 amended BAS lodgements. In the BAS, she overstated the total sales, GST on sales and GST on purchases purportedly made for her cleaning business. Ms Wyntjes did not carry on any business activity and had no business income or expenses throughout the period of offending.
In 2019, two Sydney skip bin and waste processing businesses, Bingo Industries and Aussie Skips Bin Services and Aussie Skips Recycling (Aussie Skips) and their respective CEOs, Daniel Tartak and Emmanuel Roussakis, engaged in cartel conduct by agreeing to set higher prices for their building and demolition waste services.
The Queensland Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by Dr Roger Munro against the sentence imposed on him following conviction for three counts of fraud.
Shaun Both of South Australia lodged 9 quarterly Business Activity Statements with the ATO. As a result of false statements in the BAS, in circumstances where the café had ceased trading, the offender dishonestly obtained $1,001,004 in GST.
Di Sanh Duong was the first person in Australia to be convicted of a foreign interference offence since the National Security Legislation Amendment (Espionage and Foreign Interference) Bill amended the Criminal Code in 2018.
Partner Agency: South Australia Police
On 17 April 2024, the High Court handed down judgment in the matter of Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth) v Kola [2024] HCA 14. In doing so, the Court unanimously allowed the CDPP’s appeal. The case concerned elements and directions that are permissible in conspiracy cases, and also the operation of the co-conspirators’ rule.
Date of Judgment: 21 December 2023
Court: District Court of Queensland
Partner Agency: Services Australia
On 8 December 2020, Mr Henery Baranaba Nghath of Redbank QLD, was charged with 5 offences of defrauding the Commonwealth of $94,777.82 by fraudulently claiming disaster recovery payments.
On 13 March 2024, the High Court handed down judgment in the matters of Hurt v R; Delzotto v R [2024] HCA 8. In doing so, the Court unanimously dismissed both Mr Hurt’s and Mr Delzotto’s appeals and confirmed the CDPP’s approach to the mandatory minimum sentencing provisions in ss 16AAA, 16AAB and 16AAC of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth).
Between July 2015 and August 2019, Collen Teoxon Dixon travelled to the Philippines and engaged in, or attempted to engage in, sexual intercourse with children under 16 years of age and produced child pornography material (by recording this offending) on multiple occasions. Mr Dixon’s offending involved at least thirteen child victims.
Willie Arthur Mareko was charged with 18 offences contrary to provisions of the Criminal Code (Cth). Mr Mareko pleaded guilty to all offences and on 19 September 2023, Justice Crow of the Supreme Court of Queensland sentenced Mr Mareko to a total sentence of 14 years imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 8 years.
2023
Linden Phillips submitted fraudulent GST claims, was audited, investigated, charged and pleaded guilty to two charges of dishonestly obtaining a financial advantage from the Commonwealth contrary to s134.2(1) of the Criminal Code, one charge of attempting to dishonestly obtain a financial advantage from the Commonwealth contrary to sections 11.1 and 134.2(1) of the Criminal Code and one charge of dealing in proceeds of crime worth $100,000 or more contrary to s400.4(1) of the Criminal Code.
On 21 December 2022, Judge Davison of the District Court of South Australia sentenced Cameron Bowen for both Commonwealth and state child exploitation offences occurring over a period of more than 5 years.