NSW police charge two after $2.4million fraud in Sydney CBD

Police have charged two bank employees with defrauding $2.4 million from a customer in Sydney’s CBD.

Officers from Sydney City Police Area Command were alerted to the suspected fraudulent activity on Friday 15 March 2019 and established Strike Force Chipalee to investigate.

It will be alleged that between December 2015 and January 2016, a 29-year-old man and 31-year-old woman made numerous fraudulent transactions while employed at a bank.

On Thursday 3 September 2015, the 31-year-old woman allegedly accessed a customer’s account and conducted two transactions valued at $2.4million – a withdrawal of $150,000 and transfer of $2.25million into another bank account.

On Friday 11 September 2015, an international money transfer was allegedly conducted into a business account, valued at $2.25million.

On Wednesday 16 September 2015, a third transfer of approximately $2.24million was allegedly conducted from the business account into an account belonging to a relative of the 29-year-old man.

It is alleged that the 29-year-old used this money to purchase items valued at over $500,000 and another $1.4million was transferred into his bank account, while the 31-year-old woman allegedly made transfers into her own bank account totalling $750,000.

Following investigations, at 8.30am on Thursday 31 October 2019, police arrested a 29-year-old man at Sydney International Airport. He remains before the courts.

Just after 9.45am today (Wednesday 11 December 2019), a 31-year-old woman attended Day Street Police Station where she was arrested as part of the fraud investigation and charged with knowingly deal with proceeds of crime, dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception and larceny as clerk.

She was granted strict conditional bail to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday 22 January 2020.

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