Sydney Man Charged Over Alleged $123 Million Money-Laundering Network, AFP Seizes About $750,000 in Cash
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) announced in Sydney on October 28 that a 40-year-old Sydney man has been charged over his alleged role in a transnational criminal network suspected of laundering more than $123 million on behalf of multiple organised crime syndicates, with about $750,000 in cash seized from a suburban home. The man was refused bail to appear before the NSW Bail Division Court on October 28.
Taskforce Avarus, an AFP-led initiative with AUSTRAC, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and the Australian Border Force, began investigating in February 2026. The AFP alleges the network offered laundering services to organised crime syndicates by converting cash derived from criminal activity into cryptocurrency or transferring it offshore through shell companies operating as corporate money mules, using sophisticated methods to conceal the source and movement of funds. The Sydney man allegedly controlled shell company bank accounts used to transfer millions of dollars in criminal proceeds. On October 27, the AFP, assisted by AUSTRAC, executed search warrants at homes in Strathfield and Burwood, seizing an estimated $750,000 in cash found in two grocery bags, multiple luxury handbags and watches, a cash-counting machine and electronic devices.
The man is charged with one count of recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime worth $10 million or more, carrying a maximum penalty of 15 years' imprisonment, and one count of recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime worth $100,000 or more, carrying a maximum of 10 years.
'Organised crime groups rely on money laundering networks to conceal their profits, move funds across borders and reinvest in further criminal activity,' AFP Detective Superintendent Peter Fogarty said. 'This arrest should serve as a warning to anyone providing financial services to organised crime: you are an essential part of the criminal business model, and the AFP will target you if you help criminals conceal and move their illicit wealth.' Investigations remain ongoing.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 澳大利亚悉尼海港大桥夜景。Diliff 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Sydney Harbour Bridge at night, Australia. Photo by Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
