Inner West Council employee, Transport for NSW staff, contractors found corrupt by ICAC

A laundry list of Transport for NSW employees, contractors and a staffer from a Sydney council have been found to have engaged in corrupt conduct by the NSW ICAC. Here is what we know.

A NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption investigation has found evidence of corrupt conduct against Inner West Council staffer Tony Nguyen and a laundry list of Transport for NSW staff and contractors on multimillion-dollar projects.

In its findings, handed down on Tuesday, the NSW ICAC found former Inner West Council senior project engineer, Tony Nguyen, was “able to engage in corrupt conduct that resulted in contracts at times totalling more than $1 million being awarded to businesses with which he had undisclosed associations”.

Tony Nguyen giving evidence at the Independent Commission Against Corruption on Monday.CREDIT:ICAC

“The Commission’s investigation also identified multiple instances of collusion between Downer EDI Works Pty Ltd (“Downer”) project managers and private contractors tendering for subcontracts on Transport for NSW (TfNSW) projects,” a spokeswoman for the ICAC said. “Many projects involved Mr Nguyen and some of the contracts were worth millions of dollars, with three works packages at Wollstonecraft Station alone totalling $4.6 million in value.”

The Commission also confirmed it has made findings of corrupt conduct against Transport for NSW staffers Nima Abdi and Raja Sanber over “corrupt schemes” surrounding the Glenfield Transport Interchange multi-storey car park rectification work in 2014.

“The Commission found that the project’s TfNSW project manager, Mr Abdi, manipulated the tender process to ensure the contract was awarded to ASN Contractors Pty Ltd, a company in which Mr Abdi was part owner with Mr Nguyen and Mr Sanber,” the spokeswoman said. “The work was wholly subcontracted to another company and the cost “marked up” by $125,000, being the total profit which all three divided between them.

The ICAC found the Inner West Council staffer conducted “elaborate collusive tendering schemes” with council subcontractors he had “an undeclared association” with, in an effort to influence the awarding of IWC contracts.

Pictured at the ICAC on Elizabeth Street in Sydney is John Hatzistergos, ICAC Chief Commissioner. Picture: Richard Dobson

“The schemes included dummy bidding, collusive tendering and order splitting,” the ICAC found.

“By the time Mr Nguyen resigned from IWC in October 2020, his involvement had helped some businesses benefit from up to $1.4 million worth of contracts.

“While employed at IWC, Mr Nguyen was also conducting business with his TfNSW associates, including being in a silent partnership along with Mr Abdi in Mr Sanber’s company, Sanber Group Pty Ltd, which was awarded IWC contracts by Mr Nguyen.

“Corrupt conduct findings are made against Mr Nguyen, his friend and business owner Monty Nguy, and business owner Seng Du Laphai in relation to the IWC contracts.”

Corrupt conduct findings were also handed down by the ICAC against TfNSW project manager George Panagakis, Aidan Cox of Marble Arch, Downer employee Abdal Aziz, Downer project engineer Sairam Pilli and Sydney Trains employee Benjamin Vardanega.

Former Downer project manager Abdal Aziz

The corruption commission has sought the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on whether any prosecution should be commenced.

“The Commission is of the opinion that consideration should be given to obtaining the advice of the DPP about the prosecution of Mr Nguyen, Mr Laphai, Mr Nguy, Mr Sanber, Mr Pilli, Mr Aziz, Mr Abdi, Mr Panagakis and Andrew Gayed for various offences,” the ICAC spokeswoman said.