Sydney man sentenced for identity theft and defrauding Australian bank of more than $53,000
The AFP investigation into cybercrime results in an intensive corrections order of two years and eight months and 500 hours of community service for the perpetrator.
A 25-year-old Sydney man was sentenced to an intensive corrections order of two years and eight months after pleading guilty to four offenses of fraud and identity theft in September 2023.
Additionally, the man must complete 500 hours of community service.
Following a June 2022 report from an Australian financial institution that an employee may have illegally accessed several customer accounts, the AFP’s Eastern Command Cyber Command launched an investigation which led to police executing a search warrant. at the man’s home in Balmain East in August 2022.
Police confiscated six phones and four laptops, approximately 50 to 60 debit cards in the name of the perpetrator, six debit cards in the names of other victims, SIM cards and bank documents.
The man had used the personal identification of bank customers to open fraudulent accounts and debit cards, obtaining $53,000 from other banks in the process.
The man pleaded guilty to one count of dishonestly obtaining/dealing with personal financial information, accessing data by means of a transport service with the intent to commit a serious offence, possession of identifying information and dishonestly obtaining financial advantage or causing disadvantage by deception.
“The AFP will not tolerate the exploitation of Australians, especially by people who use their positions of trust or access to steal other people’s savings or personal details,” AFP Commander Kate Ferry said in a statement. .
“The AFP has strong partnerships with financial institutions and law enforcement agencies across Australia and overseas to identify and stop criminal activity.
“The consequences of identity theft can have devastating impacts on victims, and we encourage any Australian who notices anomalies in their bank accounts to contact their bank immediately and report the matter to Report Cyber at cyber.gov. ouch”.
