Fraudulent tax agent charged over $145,000 tax refund scam, NSW

A man has been charged following an investigation into a fraudulent tax agent targeting travelling workers in the Sydney Metropolitan area.

In March, detectives from Mt Druitt Police Area Command commenced an investigation following reports a man purporting to be a tax agent was defrauding customers of their tax refunds.

Investigators were also assisted by the Australian Taxation Office.

Following extensive inquiries, detectives, assisted by North West Metropolitan Region Operations Support Group, executed a search warrant at a home at Mt Druitt about 7am today (Thursday 25 July 2019).

A 33-year-old man was arrested at the home and taken to Mt Druitt Police Station.

He was charged with two counts of dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception and deal with identity info to commit etc indictable offence.

Police will allege in court that the man, who is not a registered taxation agent, was charging a $100 fee for his services and on numerous occasions retained the customer’s tax refund.

In total, he is alleged to have fraudulently obtained more than $145,000 from customers, most of whom are in Australia on working holidays.

The man was granted strict conditional bail and is due to appear at Mt Druitt Local Court on Wednesday 7 August 2019.

Anyone with information about fraudulent activities is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au.

Information about possible taxation scams and advice on how to protect yourself can be found at: https://www.ato.gov.au/general/online-services/identity-security/verify-or-report-a-scam/

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