A Commonwealth employee from the NT is one of three people charged over an alleged multi-million dollar fraud scheme.
It’s alleged the Department of Defence raised concerns earlier this year about irregularities relating to the awarding of contracts.
The Australian Federal Police allege a Commonwealth employee, his spouse and directors of a local building company were involved in a conspiracy to influence the awarding of tenders to their company.
It is further alleged the Commonwealth employee exploited his position to influence the allocation of building contracts to the building company and a subsidiary company owned by the co-conspirators.
A search was carried out at several properties in Darwin on Friday (November 14), with authorities allegedly finding a firearm, $30,000 in cash, documentation and an illicit substance suspected to be cocaine.
All three have been charged with a string of offences, including dishonestly gaining a benefit from a Commonwealth entity.
The trio are expected to face Darwin Local Court today (November 17).
The investigation remains active.
AFP Superintendent Greg Davis says abuse of public office or corruption was not only criminal but also a serious breach of public trust.
“Defrauding the Commonwealth is a crime that prevents public funds from being used to support the wider Australian community, and we will not hesitate to investigate suspected criminal activity to bring offenders to justice,” he says.
