Case studies

A medical clinic owner defrauded the Commonwealth of more than $3.3 million by claiming rebates for services not given to over 5,870 different patients. He deleted the claims from the clinic's practice management software shortly after submitting them in order to avoid detection from employees and health practitioners of the clinic. The investigation was commenced when several members of the public made enquiries about their claim history for services they had neither sought nor received. The man pleaded guilty to 6 charges of fraud under the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) and was sentenced to 6 years in prison.

Three family members submitted false claims for Family Day Care in 2015 to defraud the program of $955,438.32. The judge noted during sentencing that the family knew the claims were fraudulent as child care services had never been provided. The family members received jail sentences that ranged between 4 years and 18 months. 

A Victorian man falsely claiming to be a qualified in vitro fertilisation (IVF) specialist performed a range of treatments on 30 victims. The man who never studied medicine deliberately deceived his victims, defrauded them of $370,000 and performed invasive procedures on their bodies.

A Sydney man and his sister submitted 77 online applications to the Australian Electoral Commission in an attempt to falsely enrol or update voter details in the lead up to an election. The applications contained false address information. The man was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment, and his co-accused received a suspended 2 month jail sentence.

The general manager of a livestock exporter provided forged documents to the Australian Government to obtain approval to export live sheep to Pakistan. The manager caused his employee (without knowing) to alter import requirements from the Pakistani Government and draft a certificate of health to make the sheep appear eligible to be imported into the country. The manager was found guilty of fraud under the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) and sentenced to 18 months in prison.

A general practitioner made 2,349 Medicare claims for services he did not provide. These false claims were submitted over a two year period and defrauded Medicare of $175,266. The investigation was commenced when his colleagues raised the alarm about potential false billing with the Department of Human Services. The man pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 3 years in prison.

Two men from NSW deliberately absorbed $450 million of otherwise assessable income through falsely created losses overseas to evade $135 million in corporate tax. The pair created a web of false identities to aid their deception and siphoned money through the UK, Hong Kong and the UAE via fake domestic and international companies to fund their lavish lifestyles. This approach resulted in $63 million in fraudulent gains. The scheme was described as incredibly complex and one of the largest tax fraud schemes detected in Australia.

A business owner under-reported tax withheld from his employees to a total value of $173,819 to the Australian Taxation Office. The business owner declared he had deducted $84,158 in Pay As You Go tax from his employees' wages when employee tax returns showed he actually withheld $257,977. The man was found guilty of one count of fraud under the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) and sentenced to 2 years in prison.

A criminal group coerced a government employee to leak personal information in exchange for cash. The government employee obtained the information from a Department of Human Services' system and sent it by text message to alleged gang members. The criminal group then used the information to assume the identities of innocent people and commit further crimes. The employee pleaded guilty to participating in a criminal group, dealing in identification information and dishonestly receiving a benefit. She was sentenced to 32 months jail.

A Tasmanian woman lied about her marital status four times over the course of six years to receive $160,766 in Centrelink benefits to which she was not entitled. She stated she was a single mother when she was actually living with her partner who she married in 2011. The registered address she used was a bush block with no actual residence and the landlord did not exist. This investigation commenced after a tip off to Services Australia. The woman received 3 years in prison after pleading guilty to the charges.