The following are articles relevant to the Professional Investigator. Click on the title to make a comment or join the conversation.
Investigation & Fraud News – Week ending 4 June 2021
13 stories this week:
ME Bank faces criminal prosecution by corporate regulator – 27 May 2021
Industry-super-linked ME Bank has been hit with a criminal lawsuit by the corporate regulator after 3700 home loan customers were incorrectly charged interest on mortgages.
‘Clearview AI’ Hit With Legal Complaints In 5 Countries, Accused of Face Recognition Abuse – 27 May 2021
Clearview AI, the American maker of a controversial facial recognition tool used mostly by police, is facing a downpour of legal complaints across Europe, alleging privacy violations based on internal documents showing the company’s algorithm at work.
Future of Australian steelworks in doubt as UK fraud office investigates Gupta – 27 May 2021
The future of the Whyalla Steelworks in South Australia hangs in the balance as the fallout continues from the recent collapse of Greensill Capital. The UK Serious Fraud Office announced that it was investigating Greensill Capital over “suspected fraud, fraudulent trading and money laundering… including its financing arrangements with Greensill Capital.” It was also that the Gupta-owned Wyelands Bank, which is currently being wound up, has been under investigation since 2018.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2021/05/28/gupt-m28.html
‘Toxic breach of trust’: Investments watchdog sends fraud warning – 28 May 2021
A spate of investment scams highlight the dangers posed by deceptive financial advisers who abuse the trust of friends and family. As an example an investment manager was sentenced to at least four years in jail for stealing $2.9 million from 13 clients. Making 167 authorised transactions from clients’ accounts, he spent the money paying off debts and personal expenses including rent, holidays and school fees.
How Brad lost $5600 in Domain email scam – 31 May 2021
Domain revealed to its customers it had been the victim of a cyber attack that allowed scammers to access personal information, including email addresses and phone numbers of people who have made property enquires. So far this year, Australians have reported 18,689 phishing attacks, and have lost $887,390 to those scams. Brad was one of those vicitms losing $5600.
https://www.afr.com/technology/how-brad-lost-5600-in-domain-email-scam-20210528-p57vz7
(Access to digital version of AFR required to read article.)
Google promotes bond scam amid police probe – 31 May 2021
Google is continuing to make money by unwittingly promoting new websites that funnel investors into a complex fraud schemes. They tricks consumers with fake high-yield bond prospectuses in which savings are siphoned through the cryptocurrency ecosystem. There is an ongoing NSW police investigation into the matter.
(Access to digital version of AFR required to read article.)
Further six charged after cryptocurrency money laundering investigation – Cybercrime Squad – 31 May 2021
A further six people have been charged by Cybercrime Squad detectives as part of an ongoing investigation into a criminal syndicate allegedly involved in laundering money via cryptocurrency, across state and territory borders.
https://www.miragenews.com/further-six-charged-after-cryptocurrency-money-568659/
Former policeman who made up same-sex relationship found guilty of fraud – 31 May 2021
A former police officer (Okan Yesilhat) who was found to have fabricated a lengthy same-sex relationship to claim a $6 million inheritance, has been found guilty of misappropriating funds from the deceased’s accounts within hours of his death.
Freedom Foods loses fraud case in Federal Court – 31 May 2021
Australian-owned Freedom Food has been slammed in the Federal Court over fraud and breach of contract allegations put forward by Blue Diamond Growers (BDG). BDG claimed Freedom Foods used other suppliers for nut-based and non-organic almond based products for manufacture and sale in Australia and New Zealand, when their agreement should have precluded that. Freedom Foods claimed this was not true.
aaahttps://insidefmcg.com.au/2021/05/31/freedom-foods-loses-fraud-case-in-federal-court/
ATO signals crypto crackdown as tax time looms – 31 May 2021
The anonymous nature of trading crypto assets has led many taxpayers to believe their investments were untraceable. The ATO will employ data-matching methods to link transactions from cryptocurrency-designated service providers to individuals’ tax returns, to ensure investors are paying the right amount of tax.
Pfizer warns on fake online COVID vaccine shots – 1 June 2021
Fraud experts remain concerned about the potential for vaccine fraud to make its way to Australia, after Interpol issued a global warning this year about fake vaccines and treatments being sold online.
Warning about ‘unsuspecting friends’ sharing hoax app – 3 June 2021
The Commonwealth Bank has issued warning against a hoax app called “Hope Business” which has cost them thousands of dollars. It claims that anyone can earn significant returns after transferring funds to use as an investment, while completing in app tasks.
https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/warning-hoax-app-commbank-000339457.html
Automotive fraud and scams skyrocket in 2021, according to the ACCC – 3 June 2021
Automotive fraud and scams have skyrocketed in 2021, according to the ACCC. 97 per cent of reported cases claimed the seller was enlisted in the military or to work for the Department of Defence, under the pretence they were selling their vehicle prior to deployment.
https://www.drive.com.au/news/automotive-fraud-and-scams-skyrocket-in-2021-according-to-the-accc/
Investigation & Fraud News – Week ending 28 May 2021
13 stories this week:
Financial Crime Compliance – What About the “Little Guys?” – 19 May 2021
Big-name firms and international financial institutions may survive investigations for alleged regulatory failings and breaches, but most medium and small firms will not, so they need independent expert advice to ensure compliance solutions are tailored to their needs.
Westpac accused of sacking senior executive over whistleblower complaints to CEO – 22 May 2021
Westpac dismissed a senior risk executive (Amanda Ware) just months after chief executive Peter King advised her to seek whistleblower protections. She has now filed a lawsuit claiming unfair dismissal, because she raised a series of concerns about compliance gaps and risk failings with the bank’s top executives.
Whistleblowers shouldn’t face prison for doing the right thing – 23 May 2021
The Human Rights Law Centre has welcomed the findings of a Senate inquiry into press freedom to better protect whistleblowers and public interest journalism in Australia. The final report was published and made 17 recommendations. These included proposed reforms to secrecy and espionage laws that potentially criminalise public interest journalism and a call for long-awaited improvements to federal whistleblower protections.
The country town shopfront behind Chinese labour king’s empire – 23 May 2021
The old shopfront in the tiny south-west Victorian country town of Koroit was an unlikely location for the corporate headquarters of a China-linked labour hire company with earnings of more than $40 million. Mr Shi’s empire came crashing down in 2018 when the Australian Federal Police executed search warrants on several of his properties. The warrants listed Mr Shi as being suspected of 11 criminal offences, including money laundering, tax fraud, secret commissions and breaches of migration laws.
Queensland horse trainer Ben Currie not guilty of fraud over 14 races – 23 May 2021
High-profile Queensland horse trainer Ben Currie has been found not guilty of giving his horses performance-enhancing substances over a two-year period.
Scam victim Victoria Herrera to rebuild her home with a bushfire recovery grant – 23 May 2021
Victoria Herrera’s home burnt to the ground in a bushfire in December 2019. Shortly afterwards, she was conned out of her life savings and insurance money by a man who claimed to be a successful builder from Sydney.
Cryptocurrency policy must catch up – 25 May 2021
Today, 100 million people have a bitcoin wallet. Australia needs a proper regulatory framework to protect consumers and prevent harmful use.
https://www.afr.com/companies/financial-services/cryptocurrency-policy-must-catch-up-20210524-p57uqw
Man arrested over alleged role in $91k puppy scam – 25 May 2021
A man has been arrested over his role in allegedly scamming more than $91,000 from people looking to buy “designer puppies” before laundering the money through cryptocurrency, as part of a multinational crime syndicate.
Former Sydney financial adviser charged over $3.3 million fraud – 26 May 2021
A former Sydney financial adviser is accused of defrauding a dozen people of almost $3.3 million. It is alleged that Gavin Fineff took funds from 12 people meant for shares holdings and diverted them to his own bank account.
Woman allegedly defrauded Macquarie Bank of $1.1 million in loans, insurance – 26 May 2021
Charleen Henegan, is facing serious charges after allegedly receiving almost $1.1 million in fraudulent loans, insurance and brokerage and commission fees from Macquarie Bank. She is accused of committing the offences through a Brisbane car yard business and allegedly forging a tax agent letter, according to court documents.
ASIC investigation leads to 6 years’ jail sentence for former financial adviser – 26 May 2021
Former financial adviser Ross Andrew Hopkins has been sentenced to a maximum six years in prison. Over a period of nearly three years, he misappropriated $2.9 million of his clients’ funds without their knowledge, and used their funds for his own benefit, such as holidays, rent, paying his own credit card debts and repaying personal loans.
‘Charismatic crook’ Foster to surrender – 26 May 2021
Peter Foster was facing 15 fraud charges after allegedly posing as a man called Bill Dawson and extricating 120 Bitcoin from a Hong Kong man in 2019 and 2020. He is planning to hand himself into Queensland Police and plead not guilty to all charges.
https://thewest.com.au/news/crime/charismatic-crook-foster-to-surrender-c-2937407
ME Bank slapped with criminal charges over redraw clawback – 27 May 2021
ME Bank has been taken to court and criminally charged with false and misleading behaviour and breaches of the Credit Act relating to its disastrous redraw clawback last year after an investigation by ASIC.
Investigation & Fraud News – Week ending 21 May 2021
12 stories this week:
Landmark laws to keep children safe, stop racial hate and protect democracy online published – 12 May 2021
New internet laws will be published in the draft Online Safety Bill to protect children online and tackle some of the worst abuses on social media, including racist hate crimes.
https://www.miragenews.com/landmark-laws-to-keep-children-safe-stop-racial-558464/
Scammers Target NSW Citizens In Re-Emerging Remote Access Scam – 12 May 2021
A re-emerging Remote Access Scam in NSW has scammers pretending to be from financial institutions or well-known companies. They access recipient’s devices remotely, using excuses that the device isn’t functioning properly, has a virus or is sending out error messages that ‘need be fixed’. Scammers will then try to talk you into buying software or services to ‘fix’ the device, and often will ask for personal details including bank and credit card details.
WA Health denies whistleblower hotel quarantine guard’s claims as Premier defends ‘not perfect’ system – 12 May 2021
The anonymous security whistleblower, was employed by a subcontractor at the Intercontinental hotel for three months until November 2020, saying the stress of working in such an unhygenic environment that wouldn’t provide masks or sanister drove him to quit.
Sydney lawyer accused of alleged cryptocurrency scam – 13 May 2021
A Sydney-based solicitor has fronted court after being accused of playing a role in a $2.3 million cryptocurrency scam. He is alleged to have been involved in a scam in which four men, deposited $2.3 million into various bank accounts. Police have alleged that the accounts were all linked to a Sydney-based solicitor, who was paid by an international criminal syndicate.
Scams circulating Eastern District – 13 May 2021
People need to exercise caution when buying goods online, particularly items listed for sale on social media. Offenders have been known to create fake profiles in order to sell items and then block buyers shortly after. https://www.miragenews.com/scams-circulating-eastern-district-559189/
https://au.news.yahoo.com/pet-shopping-scams-surge-during-231651650.html
The ‘David and Goliath’ battle behind Telstra’s huge ACCC fine over its treatment of Indigenous customers – 14 May 2021
Telstra has been slapped with a $50 million fine after it was found that Indigenous customers were being pushed into phone plans they couldn’t afford, only to be hit with huge bills and in many cases, chased by debt collectors.
ASIC issues warnings on investment scams – 14 May 2021
ASIC has identified several ongoing investment scams including duping consumers into establishing self-managed super funds, and advertisements for crypto-asset and contracts for difference, disguised as fake news articles.
https://www.financialstandard.com.au/news/asic-issues-warnings-on-investment-scams-179748068
Make-up artist Olivia Rodgers gave multiple reasons as to why she stole $65,000 from former employer, court hears – 15 May 2021
Olivia Rose Rodgers has admitted to stealing $65,000 from Bupa Health Insurance. The court heard the 31-year-old made multiple false insurance claims on behalf of family and friends, but she was the sole beneficiary of the money.
Macquarie magic: How a consultant turned $3000 into $80 million in Nuix float – 19 May 2021
Gaps in the records of tech company Nuix have raised questions about former finance professor Anthony Castagna’s $3000 investment, which he turned into an $80 million windfall. The company may have failed to record Dr Castagna’s $3000 options package that he cashed out for $80 million, when Nuix listed on the sharemarket last December. It also raises questions about whether the company backdated the options.
Police charge woman over $250,000 fraud of not-for-profit treatment centre – 20 May 2021
A woman will face court next month charged by Inner West detectives after she allegedly defrauded a not-for-profit treatment centre of almost $250,000. It is alleged that fraudulent expense forms had been submitted for a patient who had passed away and were allegedly paid into an employee’s bank account.
https://www.miragenews.com/police-charge-woman-over-250000-fraud-of-not-563147/
Warrant issued for conman Peter Foster – 20 May 2021
Serial conman Peter Foster is the subject of an arrest warrant in Queensland after prosecutors in Sydney dropped more than a dozen charges over an alleged multi-million-dollar Bitcoin scam.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7262402/warrant-issued-for-conman-peter-foster/
Smishing: The new scam fleecing Aussie victims of thousands – 20 May 2021
Australians are being inundated by a new form of scam whereby victims are sent text messages asking for them to share personal details which are then on-sold. The scam involves cyber criminals impersonating legitimate organisations such as banks or delivery companies and request mobile phone users to click a link.
Investigation & Fraud News – Week ending 14 May 2021
13 stories this week:
Young Aussies are turning to crypto investment to create wealth, but there’s a dark side – 6 May 2021
It seems that more and more people own or plan to buy cryptocurrency by the end of the year. Barney Tan, an Associate Professor of Business Information Systems at the University of Sydney Business School, said the interest in digital currencies is being driven by online hype, rising prices and FOMO. Barney also warns just like with any investment, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Last year there were more than 3,000 cryptocurrency scam reports made to the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission worth almost $30 million in losses. https://www.abc.net.au/triplej/programs/hack/young-aussies-crypto-scams/13332674
https://www.afr.com/rear-window/let-s-call-doggy-coin-what-it-is-20210505-p57p4p
(access to AFR required to read article)
AMA sues ex-CEO in $2.4M lawsuit – 7 May 2021
AMA, known as the biggest ‘smash repair’ business in Australia, is suing its former CEO Andy Hopkins over alleged anomalies in his spending. The defendant has been accused of claiming bonuses and incurring expenses inappropriately. The company said the Federal Court aims to secure $2.4m from Hopkins covering unauthorised expenses and a loan.
https://www.hcamag.com/au/specialisation/employee-engagement/ama-sues-ex-ceo-in-2.4m-lawsuit/254376
Top law firm’s invoices exposed to ANZ which employees were cooperating with ASIC investigation – 7 May 2021
During a 2014 investigation into alleged market manipulation, a group of employees at ANZ believed they were secretly giving information to the corporate regulator. What they did not know is that their lawyers, were revealing how much time and contact they had with ASIC, to their employer in invoices. This exposed the methodology behind the anonymisation technique and unmasked those employees who were meeting frequently with ASIC investigators.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-07/lawyers-exposed-anz-asic-infomants/100121298
Australians targeted by fake myGov email phishing scam – 7 May 2021
Australians are being warned of a new email scam in which hackers pose as myGov employees and then proceed to steal the bank details of unsuspecting victims.
Melbourne man allegedly posing as Uber driver scams $75,000 from unsuspecting passengers – 7 May 2021
Muhammad Umer has been accused of posing as an Uber driver who allegedly preyed on intoxicated revellers and lured them into his car to swipe their credit cards. He has been accused of taking more than $75,000 from 14 alleged victims.
Fraudulent debt collector jailed for almost 5 years – 7 May 2021
The court heard that Robert Cree ran number of debt recovery companies. Investigators found that the business was cold calling organisations, offering debt recovery services following payment of a subscription fee. In most cases, debts were never recovered and no service was provided. In the company’s liquidation, he also impersonated the company’s director to deceive the Official Receiver.
https://www.miragenews.com/fraudulent-debt-collector-jailed-for-almost-5-556383/
Does your business really need to keep that data? – 8 May 2021
Industry Professor Phillip Magness at Deakin’s Centre for Cyber Security Research and Innovation, argues businesses should carefully consider how much personal information they keep, given the risks of a data breach. Furthermore, the Australian Privacy Principles require an entity that is bound by the Privacy Act, to take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify personal information, when it is no longer needed for any purpose, for which it was collected.
https://www.miragenews.com/does-your-business-really-need-to-keep-that-data-556635/
Rio’s Mozambique ‘whistleblower’ complained of ‘obfuscation’ – 10 May 2021
The former Rio Tinto executive (Preston Chiaro) portrayed as blowing the whistle on the miner’s Mozambique coal scandal, felt he encountered ” obfuscation’ ‘ when he raised evidence in 2012 that the mines valuation was worth much less than its official carrying value.
Access to Digital version of AFR required
Smash-repairer expense claims entangle more AMA executives – 10 May 2021
AMA has alleged that several executives were tied up in illicit payments at Australia’s biggest smash repairer, including dummying up invoices to cover their tracks. The claims are contested by executives tied up in the matter, who maintain they were entitled to payments and the monies were all approved.
Access to Digital version of AFR required
Qld gourmet foodie admits tax scam – 10 May 2021
A gourmet gluten-free foodie was part of a sophisticated multimillion-dollar tax scam to pay for a friend’s luxury mansion has escaped jail. The two acted to defraud the commonwealth of over 3.6 million dollars, by setting up a fake cancer research and development tax offset claim.
https://www.youngwitness.com.au/story/7245785/qld-gourmet-foodie-admits-tax-scam/
Sinister COVID trend sees online love scams target younger victims – 11 May 2021
Australians lost more than $37 million to romance scams in the past year. A younger demographic is now the target of online thieves, as the popularity of dating apps grows with cryptocurrency and investment fraud being the new weapons of choice.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-11/covid-love-scams-target-younger-victims/100064644
Internal emails reveal WHO knew of sex abuse claims in Congo – 13 May 2021
WHO has been facing widespread public allegations of systemic abuse of women by unnamed staffers in Congo during the Ebola outbreak. Emails, recordings of internal meetings, legal documents and interviews with dozens of aid workers and WHO staffers show WHO declined to comment on any specific sex abuse allegations or how they were managed and said it had taken steps to address the problem.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/africa/internal-emails-reveal-who-knew-of-sex-abuse-claims-in-congo-
Crown and Star to phase out cash at all casinos to counter money-laundering fears – 14 May 2021
Australia’s biggest casino operators, Crown Resorts and The Star, have agreed to phase out cash from all of their casinos in an effort to prevent criminals from laundering money through their gaming tables.
