Moreland City Council: Milad El Halabi quits

A Moreland councillor accused of rigging the 2020 local elections has quit a day after fellow councillors voted to give him five months’ paid personal leave.

Moreland councillor Milad El-Halabi has quit.

Moreland councillor Milad El-Halabi has quit in the wake of police allegations he fraudulently posted voting ballots in 2020 local government elections.

Cr El-Halabi’s resignation comes less than 24 hours after his fellow councillors unanimously voted to approve his request of five months’ paid absence at Wednesday night’s council meeting.

Last week, police announced that three people had been charged following a joint investigation by the Financial Crime Squad and the Victorian Electoral Commission into the election, sparked by reports of undelivered voting ballots.

Police allege that Cr El-Halabi, 59 and of Pascoe Vale, along with two other women from the same suburb, conspired to cheat and defraud the election by returning ballots that did not belong to them.

It is alleged that the number of “missing” ballots numbered 83, and were taken from residential letter boxes.

Cr El-Halabi and the two women, aged 51 and 25, are due to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on February 25.

Cr El-Halabi could not be reached for comment on Thursday.