Paul Pisasale in court after being slapped with nine fresh charges
FORMER Ipswich mayor Paul Pisasale is accused of defrauding council by taking goods including barbecues, artwork, whiskey and a replica truck. Details of the charges were heard in court today.
Crime & Justice
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FORMER Ipswich mayor Paul Pisasale is accused of defrauding council by taking goods including barbecues, artwork, whiskey and a replica truck.
The charges have been detailed in a Brisbane court this morning as Pisasale appears for the first time to hear nine fresh charges.
The additional charges were laid by the Crime and Corruption Commission on Friday.
It includes allegations Pisasale between 2013 and 2017 dishonestly applied for his own use items including cookware, sporting memorabilia, barbecues and barbecue equipment, a backpack, tripod, speakers, electrical kitchen appliances, a ceramic craft item, a replica truck, garden lights, artwork, photographs and a quantity of whiskey.
It is alleged the items belonged to council.
Three of the four charges relate to allegations Pisasale dishonestly gained a benefit for himself while on three interstate trips between 2016 and May 2017.
As revealed by The Courier-Mail today, one of the trips was for a purported meeting with TV chef Jamie Oliver. Pisasale did not show for the meeting but he did meet a developer on the trip.
The paper also revealedyesterday that Pisasale’s latest corruption charge relates to a project by the Melbourne developer, Chris Pinzone, at Yamanto, in Ipswich’s west.
He is accused by the CCC of having “agreed to champion the Yamanto project for himself on account of influencing Ipswich City Council employees and private contractors.”
Pisasale has indicated he will fight the charges.
Outside court, Pisasale did not comment on the charges but told the media he had put his “heart and soul, a lot of hard work, into the city of Ipswich and its people”.
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