A North Shore business owner has been charged after police alleged he laundered $2.4 million in dirty cash through his construction business over an 18-month period, in what investigators describe as part of a wider organised crime laundering syndicate. The 45-year-old Killara man was scheduled to appear before the NSW Bail Division Court on Saturday, 4 July 2026, after being charged with dealing with proceeds of crime valued at $1 million or more, an offence that carries a maximum penalty of 12 years in prison.
According to allegations outlined by police, the man received illicit cash on behalf of a laundering syndicate and used his construction business to process the funds between June 2024 and November 2025. Police will allege the cash was used to pay staff, before legitimate business earnings, plus a commission, were transferred back to the syndicate through a fraudulent invoice arrangement.
The case emerged from an AFP-led Taskforce Avarus investigation that began after a joint AFP and NSW Police operation in December last year resulted in four men being charged over the laundering of $150 million in illicit cash. Police say analysis of devices seized during that earlier probe helped identify the 45-year-old suspect in the latest case.afp.
A search warrant was executed at the man’s home in Killara, NSW, on 3 July 2026, where officers allegedly seized several mobile devices, data from a computer at the premises and about $30,000 in cash. Police refused him bail after the arrest.
The AFP said the alleged conduct allowed the laundering network to keep operating for organised crime, with one officer stating that investigators allege the man used his own business as a front to wash dirty cash and avoid taxes. The matter remains before the courts and the allegations have not been tested.
The latest charge adds to a broader crackdown on money laundering networks in Sydney and elsewhere, where authorities have increasingly linked business structures, illicit cash and organised crime activity. In the earlier December 2025 case, police said the syndicate was believed to have laundered criminal cash on behalf of an organised crime group, with links to large-scale illicit tobacco activity.
Money laundering cases have become a major focus for Australian law enforcement, with the AFP repeatedly warning that criminal proceeds are often hidden through legitimate-looking businesses, cash-intensive trades and false invoicing. Investigators in this case say the construction company was allegedly used in exactly that way, allowing dirty money to be blended with lawful revenue before being moved back into the criminal network.afp.
If convicted, the accused faces one of the most serious penalties available under Commonwealth proceeds-of-crime laws. For prosecutors, the case may also help support ongoing efforts to dismantle the wider syndicate alleged to have handled hundreds of millions of dollars across multiple investigations.