THE OFFENCE:
PUBLISHING FALSE OR MISLEADING MATERIAL TO OBTAIN FINANCIAL ADVANTAGE OR CAUSE DISADVANTAGE
THE LAW:
Section 192G of the Crimes Act 1900 (Cth) makes it a criminal offence to dishonestly make or publish, or concur in making or publishing, any statement (whether or not in writing) that is false or misleading in a material particular with the intention of obtaining property belonging to another or obtaining a financial advantage or causing a financial disadvantage.
MAXIMUM PENALTY:
Anyone convicted of publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage is liable to a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years.
NSW POLICE CHARGE 7 PEOPLE IN FAKE SEX ABUSE CASE
NSW Police have charged seven people alleged to have been part of a sex abuse claim scheme, whereby individuals referred to as “claims farmers” are alleged to have approached, encouraged and coached adults to lodge fake claims for historic child sex abuse. The purpose of the conduct was to have the claimants ultimately obtain compensation payments from the NSW Government through the National Redress Scheme, with the “claims farmers” allegedly receiving more than $2200 from various Sydney law firms for each referral.
The scheme was alleged to have been worth in excess of $1 billion, with reports that the late TikTok star Russell Manser was linked to the investigation. Those alleged to have been recruited to lodge the fraudulent claims included former young offenders, inmates, and school students.
NSW Police arrested 55-year-old Fotis Antonios, who they allege was the boss of the syndicate and one of the claims farmers. Mr Antonios was charged with 21 fraud-related offences. Police arrested a further six people, one of which was arrested on the Gold Coast, whilst the other five were all in Sydney.
The charges included publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage.
If you or someone you know have been accused or charged with publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage, contact Criminal Lawyers Group immediately.
MULTIPLE LAW FIRMS INVESTIGATED
A number of law firms have been investigated for links or knowledge of the scam, with there being thousands of strikingly similar serious claims. Curiously, and perhaps suspiciously, one-third of all inmates at Cooma’s minimum-security prison have submitted claims related to historic child abuse. Whilst each claim should be assessed on their merits and not with a presumption of falsehood, it is easy to see why the attention of the NSW Police was drawn to this alleged offending, related to the offence of publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage. Others who were allegedly approached to submit the fraudulent claims included school students and former young offenders.
Detective Superintendent Gordon Arbinja stated that “None of the claimants we looked at wanted police intervention – none. All wanted to go down the civil route.” Whilst honest survivors of sexual abuse are of course permitted and encouraged to report the abuse and consider their options with respect to compensation and police intervention, suspicious patterns across a wide number of cases would inevitably result in further investigation from the authorities.
WHAT IS THE NATIONAL REDRESS SCHEME?
The claims that are subject to the charges of publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage were made against the NSW Government departments of the NSW Department of Communities and Justice and the NSW Department of Education through the National Redress Scheme.
The National Redress Scheme is a Commonwealth scheme that was established in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and which provides eligible child sexual abuse survivors with access to counselling, a direct personal response from institutions responsible for the abuse and a redress payment.
CONTACT CRIMINAL LAWYERS GROUP NOW
Being accused or charged with publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage can have serious legal implications.
If you or anyone you know have been accused or charged with publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage, contact our expert criminal lawyers at Criminal Lawyers Group immediately for a free consultation. Our award-winning criminal law specialists have proven results in securing the best outcomes for our clients across NSW who have been charged with publishing false or misleading material to obtain financial advantage or cause disadvantage.