Mid West cucumber farmer suspected of tax fraud after shocking find during routine stop at airport

A Mid West cucumber farmer — nabbed at Perth Airport with nearly $700,000 in cash in dual backpacks — has been forced to surrender the money, which authorities believe was being shifted to avoid paying tax. The 52-year-old first came into the sights of the Australian Federal Police in 2021, when his flights from Adelaide to Perth and then on to Geraldton crossed paths with a routine patrol by an airport canine unit. What the dog had sniffed out were multiple bundles of $50 and $100 notes — which the man initially claimed were cash payments as part of his vegetable business. While the money and other documents were seized, he was let go without charge, pending further inquiries. Those inquiries by the AFP-led Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce honed in on the man’s financial activities amid growing suspicions of significant tax fraud. In December of the same year, more AFP and Border Force officials raided three Mid West properties linked to the man, and seized more paperwork. The warrants also turned up two workers employed in breach of their visas, for which the farmer was eventually fined $15,984. “The AFP CACT investigator formed the suspicion the man had been carrying the cash to conceal his earnings from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO),” a spokesperson for the AFP told The Sunday Times. Earlier this month, WA’s Supreme Court signed off forfeiture orders which officially seized the $679,750. AFP Acting Detective Inspector Fleur Jennings said the work done by the assets confiscation team aimed to make sure law-abiding Australians were not disadvantaged by people trying to cheat the tax system. “Australians who don’t pay taxes, or who accumulate illicit wealth are able to enjoy lives of luxury without the same financial pressures faced by ordinary Australians,” Insp. Jennings said. “The CACT’s investigators, forensic accountants and litigators work hard to punish and deter people who seek to profit from exploiting the community and ensure they justify how they accumulate their wealth. “The successful restraint and forfeiture of this amount of cash is testament to the ongoing collaboration of CACT investigators and litigators and their persistence to see the legal process through to completion.” The AFP pointed out that no criminal charges have to be laid for confiscation cases to be brought. And the CACT laws allow agencies to pool the expertise of the AFP, Australian Border Force, ATO, Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and AUSTRAC, who can all trace, restrain and ultimately confiscate criminal assets. When assets are restrained through courts, they are then managed on behalf of the Commonwealth by the Australian Financial Security Authority. Confiscated assets are liquidated and placed in the Commonwealth confiscated assets account. Those funds are redistributed by the Attorney-General into various crime-fighting measures, including child protection and online child safety, illicit drugs, community safety programs, and a national DNA program for unidentified and missing persons. “It is rewarding that funds forfeited through the CACT’s work are redirected to programs that benefit the community,” Insp. Jennings said.