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A mother-and-daughter duo – one claiming to be a fortune teller and a feng shui master – have been charged over allegedly scamming almost A$70m ($46m; \u00a335m) from “vulnerable” Vietnamese targets in Australia.<\/p>\n
The mother, 53, was arrested in the exclusive suburb of Dover Heights in Sydney on Wednesday, along with her daughter, 25. Police say they were an intrinsic part of a “highly sophisticated” fraud and money laundering syndicate.<\/p>\n
The mother allegedly convinced her victims to take out loans, keeping a share herself, by telling them she foresaw a “billionaire” in their future.<\/p>\n
She was refused bail due to appear in court on Thursday. Her daughter was granted bail with a court date in January.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The mother faces 39 charges including directing the activities of a criminal group and dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception.<\/p>\n
Her daughter was charged with seven offences including recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime and being part of a criminal group.<\/p>\n
During the early-morning arrest at the pair’s multi-million-dollar mansion, police seized financial documents, mobile phones, luxury handbags, a 40 gram gold bar worth A$10,000 ($6,500; \u00a35,000) and A$6,600 in casino chips.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Police said the mother was an influential and trusted member of her community and as a fortune teller, she would give readings to clients, some who divulged they were in financial hardship.<\/p>\n
She would then predict a billionaire would come to their aid, and this “would happen sooner rather than later” if they took out a loan. <\/p>\n
As part of Wednesday’s arrest, investigators also froze about A$15m in assets, adding to A$60m in assets already seized from a wider probe into the syndicate that started last year. <\/p>\n
Police launched Strike Force Myddleton to investigate a criminal group allegedly using stolen identities to get loans for “ghost cars” – luxury cars that did not exist. <\/p>\n
“What began as an investigation into fraudulent car financing has expanded into uncovering one of the most sophisticated financial crime syndicates I have seen in my career at the helm of the Financial Crimes Squad,” said Det Supt Gordon Arbinja, commander of the financial crimes squad.<\/p>\n
Police claim the criminal group’s activities include “large-scale personal, business and home loan fraud against multiple financial institutions”.<\/p>\n
According to an investigation by the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), the mother-and-daughter duo are linked to what’s been dubbed the Penthouse Syndicate, as the alleged ringleader lived in an A$18m penthouse in Sydney.<\/p>\n
Police claim the group defrauded major Australian banks of up to A$250m with allegedly corrupt bank staff approving loans to help the syndicate buy multiple properties in Sydney, according to the SMH.<\/p>\n
More than a dozen people have already been arrested, charged with a range of offences including fraud and money laundering, in what is believed to be one of the largest such cases in Australia.<\/p>\n
Police said they expect to make more arrests with a focus on the “professional facilitators” of the criminal group including lawyers, accountants and property developers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n