Sky Rail workers among those nabbed in public service probe

A brazen alleged heist by Sky Rail workers is just one of dozens of fraud and corruption cases caught in a year, costing Victorian taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Premier Daniel Andrews arriving at the new Noble Park Sky Rail station. Sky Rail workers were charged over stealing from the project. Picture: Jason Edwards

Four workers on Melbourne’s sky rail project have been charged over the theft of $200,000 worth of construction materials from work sites.

The Sunday Herald Sun can reveal the brazen heist is one of dozens of fraud and corruption cases within ­Victoria’s public service since July 1 last year, costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Police have also been called in to probe contractors who worked on the Caulfield to Dandenong sky rail project over potentially fraudulent timesheets.

Level Crossing Removal Authority chief Kevin Devlin said: “Any matter of this nature is taken very seriously. We have zero tolerance for ­any illegal ­activity on our project sites.”

Sky rail concept art. Four workers were charged with stealing material from the project’s work sites.

The Education Department — which has been marred by serious ­corruption in recent years — has dealt with five significant incidents in the past 12 months, including a worker busted falsely claiming leave entitlements.

Four other matters are being probed by police, including two phishing scams where criminals tried to rip off taxpayers by hacking a government supplier’s communications and providing false bank account details.

Other cases include:

A COURT Services employee being ­investigated by police for “engaging in dishonest activity to achieve a non-­financial gain for another person”;

THE disappearance of dozens of wireless internet devices worth more than $36,000 from the trouble-plagued IT agency Cenitex;

MORE than $400,000 inadvertently paid to scammers who siphoned money from a contractor;

A SIGNIFICANT fraud case involving the Department of Justice and Community Service, which is being probed by the anti-corruption watchdog and has already prompted tough new measures to “manage the risks associated with this conduct”.

The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission has launched an advertising campaign urging ­Victorians to report public sector ­corruption. Chief Alistair ­Maclean said it was “not a victimless crime”.

“It wastes taxes and rates that should be used to operate and maintain Victoria’s schools, hospitals, roads and other vital public services and projects,” he said. “It damages the reputation of organisations and undermines community confidence in the public sector.”

More than a dozen fraud and corruption cases were identified within the Department of Health and Human ­Services, with 10 still under investigation and two matters proven.

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Public servants were also caught falsifying timesheets and stealing petty cash and electronic devices.

The Department of Parliamentary Services is dealing with one suspected fraud case now before the courts.

In the Department of Premier and Cabinet, a $598 camera was stolen from a car and computer equipment worth $300 was taken from an office.

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