Police blindsided George Alex with case to seize assets worth millions
Twelve people allegedly involved in a $17 million tax fraud — where construction identity George Alex was also arrested — had no idea police were launching a secret court case to seize their assets and luxury toys, a court has heard. FULL LIST OF ARRESTS AND SEIZED ASSETS
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It’s never fun when police seize your toys worth millions — like sports cars, waterfront properties and bank accounts — and it’s even worse if you don’t see it coming.
That’s exactly what happened when police launched a surprise attack against the alleged members of construction identity George Alex’s alleged $17 million tax fraud scheme.
According to documents released by the Queensland Supreme Court, 12 people accused of being involved in the alleged syndicate were given almost no notice that the Australian Federal Police were applying to the court to freeze 99 individual assets that the police allege were funded by the proceeds of crime.
By the end of the proceedings on July 17, The George Alex 12 were ordered by the court to surrender control of millions of dollars worth of assets.
This included 14 properties, starting with Mr Alex’s waterfront apartment on the Gold Coast and a lavish Sydney mansion in Earlwood worth $2.5 million, owned by a company linked to the construction identity.
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Then there were the cars. Police seized a fleet of 17 vehicles, ranging from multiple Porsche Cayennes and Range Rovers to a 1958 Holden FC and a 2009 Maserati Gran Turismo, the documents said.
Police also seized one Mustang boat and a luxury 2018 Highline Enforcer caravan worth upwards of $60,000.
The vast majority of the freezing orders related to the alleged fraud syndicate members’ bank accounts, the documents said. The court froze 64 of them.
The details of the assets seizures can now be revealed after a non-publication order on their existence was lifted last week.
Police applied for the assets to be frozen on July 17, but the existence of the case was prevented from being revealed by a non publication order.
The order was in place because the police investigation, known as Operation Bordelon, was preparing to make pre-dawn raids in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT, four days later that would result in 12 people being charged.
Lawyers for the police explained to the court that the order had to be kept a secret — including from the 12 people who were about to have their assets frozen — to prevent them from either hiding or offloading the assets.
It was for this reason that police lawyers explained that the application to freeze the assets had to be heard without giving any of the 12 targets notice that the case was actually happening, court documents said.
Police allege Alex was the mastermind of a network, that included highly qualified finance workers, construction industry identities, organised crime figures, and their respective family members.
The alleged fraud scheme which began with labour hire companies that performed legitimate work in the building and construction industry, but then used a network of shelf companies to avoid paying millions in tax.
The funds were then allegedly laundered through a number of other companies before being transferred to accounts controlled by accused syndicate members in other countries.
The millions were then allegedly transferred back to Australian accounts controlled by other accused syndicate members.
One of these people was allegedly Caitlin Hall, the wife of jailed drug smuggler Michael Ibrahim. Police allege $1.5 million was transferred to accounts controlled by Hall and she has been charged with recklessly dealing with more than $1 million that was the proceeds of crime and is yet to enter a plea in court.
Alex’s 22-year-old son, Arthur was charged with conspiring to cause a loss to the Commonwealth and intentionally deal with proceeds of crime, money or property worth $1,000,000 or more. He is yet to enter a plea.
Court documents and property records showed Arthur Alex was the sole owner of an Earlwood property that he bought for $2.35 million in 2018.
Court documents said the 22-year-old also owned or controlled a 2019 Range Rover Sport, a 2019
Also charged was Mark Ronald Bryers, who was once one of New Zealand’s richest men. The 62-year-old, who was living at Glebe when he was charged with conspire with the intention of dishonestly causing a loss to the Commonwealth and intentionally deal with proceeds of crime, money or property worth $1,000,000 or more. He is yet to enter a plea.
George Alex, 49, was charged with conspire with the intention of dishonestly causing a loss to the Commonwealth and conspiring to deal with proceeds of crime, money or property worth $1,000,000 or more,
According to the documents, the intention of the asset freezing was to prevent the accused syndicate members from having a benefit from the alleged criminal earnings and cripple their ability to continue operating.
The investigation was conducted by a joint task force known as the Criminal Assets Confiscation Team, which was established in 2011. It is led by the AFP and involves the Australian Taxation Office, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre.
The documents said the CACT was established to combat serious and organised crime by identifying and removing the proceeds and benefits of it and to starve criminal organisations by seizing their profits.