A joint investigation between the Australian Border Force (ABF) and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has thwarted serious criminal behaviour by four Chinese nationals within two states.
This week, a 55-year-old Chinese national received a criminal conviction and fine for her money laundering activity, tax evasion, and foreign worker exploitation within the construction industry.
She was one of four Chinese nationals to be indicted as part of an ABF-led investigation dubbed Operation Underpitch.
Since arriving in Australia, these criminals have jointly withdrawn more than $137 million (US$92.8 million), delivering under-the-table cash payments to foreign workers who are apparently being exploited in the New South Wales (NSW) and Australian Capital Territory (ACT) construction industries.
ATO Deputy Commissioner John Ford said that individuals who participate in financial crime activities are often engaged in larger criminal activities.
“These criminals are motivated by financial gain, and their activities rob the Australian public of revenue to support essential services such as health and education, ”said Mr. Ford, also chief of SFCT (Serious Financial Crime Taskforce).
“This action demonstrates that the SFCT agencies will work together on operational activity that will ultimately bring criminals to account.”
Construction workers at the Barangaroo development in Sydney, Australia, March 24, 2020.AAP Image/Joel Carrett
On April 24, a Chinese national aged 22 was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment for managing a property reasonably suspected of being proceeds of crime, while a 27-year-old Chinese received a 15-month sentence for the same type of crime on May 29. Meanwhile, a fourth Chinese national aged 30 was arrested in October 2021 and later sentenced to three years in October 2022 for the same crime.
Further investigations revealed that from September 2020 to January 2022, an ACT target received electronic payments from eight Canberra-based construction and painting businesses.
Warning notices for illegal workers were issued to five businesses in March, followed by a raid on ACT premises in May which led to the discovery of two unlawful non-citizens, ten lawful non-citizens and $82,000 in cash.
This warrant activity has also revealed the use of cash withdrawals to pay foreign workers in the construction industry whilst simultaneously avoiding superannuation and PAYG tax.
While the investigation, Operation Underpitch, is ongoing, this multi-agency task force has involved numerous agencies working together. These include the ABF, ATO, Australian Federal Police (AFP), Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), and the Department of Home Affairs and Services Australia.
For more information on the SFCT and how to recognise the signs of financial crime, visit www.ato.gov.au/SFCT and download our Serious Financial Crime Identikit.
If you are aware of foreign worker exploitation, or any suspicious or illegal immigration, visa, customs and trade activity, contact www.borderwatch.gov.au
