Jordan Arvanitakis pleads guilty to attempting to rort $260k from Victorian government

A veteran Melbourne accountant attempted to rort $260k from the government mostly on behalf of his small business clients in a “Robin Hood-like” scheme.

Cornerstone Group's Jordan Arvanitakis attempted to rort $260k from the state government, mostly on behalf of his small business clients.. Picture: LinkedIn

A “Robin Hood-like” accountant attempted to rort $260,000 from the state government at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, mostly on behalf of his small business client, a court has heard.

Jordan Arvanitakis, 59, pleaded guilty in the County Court on Wednesday to two counts of attempting to obtain financial advantage by deception.

In early 2020, Arvanitakis, of Ivanhoe, was the director and sole shareholder of Cornerstone Group, a financial consulting company whose clients included small businesses.

When the pandemic began, small businesses that met certain criteria were able to apply for a $10,000 grant to help them during the economic downturn.

Between April 23 and June 30 2020, Arvanitakis submitted 26 false submissions to the Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions (DJPR) on behalf of his clients, totalling $260,000.

Arvanitakis, an accountant with 25 years’ experience and also a qualified tax agent, submitted falsely amended Business Activity Statements (BAS) on behalf of his clients.

Kym Weaver, a fraud specialist at the DJPR noticed “anomalies” in his applications, including that some BAS statements were submitted via Microsoft Word rather than through the ATO.
The court heard he was not motivated solely by a need to assist his clients, and he was able to recoup outstanding fees from clients who owed Cornerstone Group through the grants.

Cornerstone Group's Jordan Arvanitakis’s offending was described as “Robin Hood-like”. Picture: LinkedIn

Other anomalies were that the statement had been created at 11.06pm, before being submitted at 11.08pm.
Eventually the DJPR decided that he had deliberately submitted false information in the BAS statements and the matter was referred to Victoria Police, who charged Arvanitakis on June 25, 2024 after interviewing him more than two years earlier in April 2022.
He made full admissions in two written affidavits, in which he told police he acted alone.
Arvanitakis told police he realised many of his clients would not qualify for the grants, despite many of them “facing catastrophic conditions” as a result of the pandemic.
He also told them that some clients were angry the grant ignored small businesses like theirs, and he said he was asked “to do whatever was necessary”.
Arvanitakis gave most of the money he did get to his clients, but did pocket $47,758, which he will have to pay back to the government.

Arvanitakis submitted 26 false BAS statements in an attempt to get grants for his small business clients.

The prosecution told the court there were “Robin-Hood like” features of his offending, but also said it was “serious offending by somebody who did hold a position of trust”.
The court heard he was a man of “very good character” who “gives a lot back to the community”.The defence noted that his offending was “unique” in that it was distinguished from other large frauds “which are purely for monetary gain”.

The prosecution asked for Arvanitakis to receive a “punitive” community corrections order (CCO) and a criminal conviction.
Arvanitakis will be sentenced by Judge Leighfield at 10am on June 5 and will be assessed for a CCO in the meantime.