Lawyers Weekly reports
A lawyer and accountant caught up in Australia’s largest fraud scam, which robbed the Tax Office of over $100 million, has faced court.
For an alleged period of two years, Dev Menon was involved in the Plutus Payroll scam that funnelled funds meant for wages, tax and superannuation into side companies directed by “vulnerable” people.
It was alleged the company used its fee-free service to attract legitimate clients and received around $141 million. Over $105 million that was set meant for the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) was instead siphoned by the primary conspirators.
After a lengthy hearing, before which the defence filed a number of pre-trial applications the Crown submitted were an attempt to “prolong the proceedings”, Menon was found guilty by a jury for his role.
The NSW Supreme Court heard on Thursday (29 June) this allegedly included concealing the fraud from the ATO, the Australian Federal Police and the Office of the State Revenue, and advising the primary conspirators in fraud, creating false deeds and a cover-up attempt.
It was submitted Menon was part of the blackmail of “impoverished, vulnerable and often drug-affected” directors. These directors, the Crown said, have been left with multimillion-dollar debts.
In sentencing submissions, the Crown submitted Menon was in an “intentional situation” where he managed trust accounts and created false fee notes and legal bills as a “mechanism for the money to be taken out of the structure and sent to second-tier companies”.
