Fake doctor Shyam Acharya exposes immigration system failure, Peter Dutton says

Immigration Minister says case of alleged stolen Indian doctor’s identity strengthens need for a homeland security agency.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton says the case of a man who allegedly stole the identity of an Indian doctor and worked for NSW Health shows a “big failing of the system”, warning the consequences could have been “diabolical” if he had posed a national security threat.

Mr Dutton also used the example of Shyam Acharya, who allegedly masqueraded as doctor Sarang Chitale, to talk up the need for all intelligence agencies to be able to share information as they do in the Homeland Security and Home Office departments in the United States and United Kingdom.

There is a push being driven by Immigration Department head Mike Pezzullo and supported by Mr Dutton to create such a super-agency in Australia.

“We need to be realistic because if this guy (Mr Acharya) had of been a national security threat as opposed to a threat just to patients or the health system, which is bad enough, then the consequences could be diabolical. We saw that with Man (Haron) Monis and other cases as well,” he told 2GB radio.

“Obviously there’s been a big failing of the system, whether it’s at a federal or state level doesn’t really matter, the lesson needs to be learned.

Shyam Acharya, pictured at the Louvre in Paris on his WhatsApp profile, allegedly impersonated an Indian doctor, Sarang Chitale, and worked in the NSW health system for 11 years before leaving the country.

“He first came to Australia on a tourist visa in 2002, he went out of the country and then came back on a couple of different visas. But from that early stage he was employed by NSW Health in a lower position and then got his registration as I understand it and … travelled on a fake passport.

“I get accused all the time of being too tough on these processes and cancelling visas and all the rest of it but these are exactly the cases that we want to identify, stop these people before they get here.”

Mr Dutton agreed with NSW Health Minsiter Brad Hazzard that a $30,000 fine for Mr Acharya’s alleged offence was “woefully inadequate” and said federal Health Minister Greg Hunt was looking at “additional fines and the rest of it”.

He wanted to ensure intelligence agencies were not working in “silos”, which he said was the aim of Homeland Security when George W. Bush created the department after 9/11.

“Have a look at this doctor by way of one example — and again I might be a decision maker in relation to matters regarding his citizenship and what not so I won’t comment on the detail of it — but we have these cases, you necessarily want to make sure you’re getting access to all the information that whatever government department holds on that person,” Mr Dutton said.

“We just live in a very different age than ten years ago, let alone 15-20 years go.”

Malcolm Turnbull refused to comment on “speculation about administrative arrangements” when he was asked earlier this week about the establishment of a US-style Homeland Security department.

Mr Dutton said it had been a topic of discussion for governments over a long period of time but he was not aware of the “process” to set up such a department.

“If there’s consideration it’s an issue for others,” he said.

Mr Dutton said his department today was a “very different beast” to what it was when Mr Acharya first entered Australia and his only requirement was that it continued “world’s best practice”.