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The 2021-22 CDPP Annual Report was tabled in Parliament on Friday 28 October 20

The CDPP recently received an overall satisfaction score of 86 per cent from its biennial 2022 Partner Agency Survey.

The CDPP's 2022-26 Corporate Plan is now available.

The Attorney-General of New South Wales today announced the appointment of Ms Sarah McNaughton SC as a judge of the Supreme Court of NSW. 

The CDPP’s Library and Research Services team has won the 2022 Legal Information Service of the Year award announced at the Australian Law Librarians’ Association (ALLA) conference in Hobart on Thursday 26 August.

On 7 July 2022 the Commonwealth Attorney-General, the Honourable Mark Dreyfus QC MP, announced he had declined to proceed further in the prosecution of Mr Bernard Collaery for five offences relating to the alleged unlawful communication of ASIS information contrary to the Intelligence Services

On 11 February 2022, the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions Ms Sarah McNaughton SC announced her decision to decline to proceed further in the criminal prosecutions of Citigroup Global Markets Australia Pty Limited, Deutsche Bank AG and four senior banking executives for cartel offences

The CDPP 2020-21 Annual Report was tabled in Parliament on Wednesday 20 October 2021. 

Project Wickenby

The new Serious Financial Crime Taskforce, which began operating on 1 July 2015, will build on the success of Project Wickenby.

Project Wickenby commenced in February 2006, a Commonwealth cross agency taskforce was set up to combat international tax evasion, which posed a serious threat to the integrity of Australia’s tax and regulatory systems.

When it finished on 30 June 2015, it was the largest tax evasion investigation ever run in Australia’s history. It netted $2.29 billion in tax liabilities and recouped $985.67 million in outstanding revenue. A total of 46 individuals were convicted.

Project Wickenby enhanced the strategies and capabilities of Australian and international agencies to collectively detect, deter and deal with international tax avoidance and evasion.

It was also designed to improve community confidence in Australian regulatory systems by showing steps are taken to address serious non-compliance with tax laws, and to reform administrative practice, policy and legislation.

By prosecuting offences that arose from the taskforce’s investigations, we played a vital role in the project.

You can learn more about Project Wickenby on the ATO’s website.

Key legislation

Main offences

  • s.134.2 Criminal Code—dishonestly obtaining a financial benefit by deception
  • s.135.1(5) Criminal Code—dishonestly causing a loss or a risk of a loss to the Commonwealth
  • s.135.4(3) Criminal Code—conspiracy to cause a loss or a risk of a loss to the Commonwealth
  • ss.400.3–400.6 Criminal Code—money laundering offences.

Penalties

The maximum penalties for these offences are:

  • 10 years’ imprisonment for s.134.2 Criminal Code
  • 10 years’ imprisonment for s.135.1(5) Criminal Code
  • 10 years’ imprisonment for s.135.4(3) Criminal Code
  • 2–25 years’ imprisonment for ss.400.3-400.6 Criminal Code.

Partner agencies

Significant Cases

  • R v Glyn Morgan Jones; R v Anthony Joseph Hili [2010] NSW CCA 108
  • R v Anthony Joseph Hili; R v Glyn Morgan Jones [2010] HCA 45
  • Milne v R [2011] NSWCCA 24
  • R v Boughen; R v Cameron [2012] NSWCCA 17
  • R v Lynette Liles [2012] NSWSC 1249
  • R v Paul John Gregory [2011] VSCA 145
  • R v Hargraves; R v Stoten [2010] QCA 328
  • R v Tatsuo Jo [2012] QCA 356
  • R v Steven Hawkins [2013] NSWCCA 208
  • R v Zerafa [2013] NSWCCA 222
  • Isbester v R [2013] NSWCCA 230
  • R v de Figueiredo [2013] QCA303