Key ICAC witness put the rubbish out on a Sunday night. He hasn't been seen since
Ranken said it was alleged that Helmy, 38, engaged in a wide range of corrupt practices in exchange for benefits, which included ensuring Protection Barriers was the preferred contractor and approving the payment of falsely inflated invoices.
He said the ICAC anticipated that there would be evidence that Helmy was assisted in his arrangement with Protection Barriers by two other Transport for NSW associates – Mukeshkumar Patel and David Liu – who allegedly received financial benefits.
Last September, officers from ICAC, the NSW Police and NSW Crime Commission conducted raids on properties around the state. Items seized from Helmy's home included nine 100-gram gold bullion bars, five one-ounce gold bullion bars, three red bags containing 20 one-ounce gold bullion nuggets and $12,317 in cash.
Ranken said evidence would show that the gold bullion seized from Helmy's home were consistent in appearance with gold bullion nuggets Chellew allegedly provided to him in 2023.
In addition, the NSW Crime Commission seized $413,000 worth of cryptocurrency held by Helmy and the equivalent of $8 million in cryptocurrency in a Binance account in the name of his sister. It also seized a Maserati he purchased.
The Crime Commission also seized property and assets from Chellew and his wife Meshel and their related entities worth more than $41 million, including $735,000 in cryptocurrency, a 2023 Lexus car worth about $160,000 and two 2024 Bentleys each worth about $500,000.
In addition, they also seized multiple properties owned by the Chellews in NSW and Queensland worth $15 million.
Under questioning at the first day of a public inquiry on Monday, Jason Chellew said he was asked by Helmy in about April or May 2020 to come to see him about getting more work, and the Transport for NSW staffer proposed 'jobs for kickbacks'.
On the first occasion they met at a McDonald's in Pennant Hills in 2020 whereby Chellew said he would have brought along cash but could not recall to the inquiry the amount.
Chellew said the amounts he handed to Helmy started as $10,000 or $20,000 in cash before the amount of work from Transport for NSW 'got crazy' during the COVID pandemic.
He told the inquiry that, under the proposed arrangement from Helmy, the inflated rates on top of the work would be split 50:50 between them. Early on, Chellew said his concern was that if his company said 'no' to Helmy's proposal, they would not receive contracts.
Chellew said he started cryptocurrency payments to Helmy from about 2021, and there was an occasion when he provided gold in 2023, adding that he often struggled to keep up the payments to Helmy because of the amount of work.
The public inquiry, which is being presided over by ICAC chief commissioner John Hatzistergos, is part of an ICAC investigation known as Operation Wyvern. The hearings are expected to run for six weeks.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AU Financial Review
10 minutes ago
- AU Financial Review
The quiet death of Mayfair 101 founder's ASIC conspiracy theory
One of the longest-running false narratives in Australian business that I have seen in 42 years of finance journalism quietly died this month, but there is no sign it will be buried any time soon. I am talking about the claim by James Mawhinney, who founded the Mayfair 101 Group of companies, that the COVID-19 pandemic and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission destroyed his $1.6 billion vision for a 'tourism mecca' in Far North Queensland.
Perth Now
5 hours ago
- Perth Now
More results needed from PM's China trip: Liberals
Voters should have expected more tangible outcomes from the prime minister's trip to China, the opposition says. But a senior government minister said the six-day visit by Anthony Albanese had helped to stabilise the relationship with Australia's largest trading partner. The prime minister landed in Australia on Friday after visiting Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu during the official visit, which included a one-on-one meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. While Mr Albanese said the visit would strengthen ties between the two countries, deputy opposition leader Ted O'Brien said the trip should have been complemented with visits to nearby Asian allies. "When you have six days in a country, I think it is fair for the Australian people to expect more from it," he told Sky News on Sunday. "By spending six days there, not going to Japan, not going to South Korea, I think it has accentuated the problem we have with an imbalanced foreign policy." But Attorney-General Michelle Rowland said criticism of the prime ministerial visit was "extraordinary", given work was needed to be done to repair ties with China after trade sanctions on Australian exports were lifted. "China is our single biggest trading partner. Our resources sector relies on that relationship," she told Sky News. "We will always act in the national interest, and often we will disagree, but this is important from the perspective of our trade and of stabilising that relationship, which, quite frankly, had broken down." China imposed an estimated $20 billion worth of trade impediments against Australian products such as wine, lobster and beef following a breakdown in ties between the two countries at the start of the COVID pandemic. Access to the Chinese market has recently opened up to large numbers of exports. "This is about creating jobs and extra trade opportunities for Australia, and it's important that we maintain this vital relationship," Ms Rowland said. Mr O'Brien said while he was not criticising the prime minister for going overseas on the foreign visit, the outcomes did not meet expectations. "We are supportive of economic diplomacy. It's absolutely key, but Australia deserves nothing less than tangible outcomes, especially when you spend a week in country," he said.
Sky News AU
a day ago
- Sky News AU
North Korea bans foreign tourists from beach-side resorts just weeks after they were completed
North Korea has decided to ban foreign visitors from huge newly built tourist area just weeks after the country's state media announced it was completed. The seaside city of Wonsan, a popular holidaymaking spot for locals, has been the centre of a major redevelopment for the country's tourism sector that can reportedly accommodate about 20,000 visitors. But North Korean tourism website DPR Korea Tour issued a notice on Friday stating the freshly finished tourist zone is 'temporarily not receiving foreign tourists,' AP has reported. No further details about the ban were provided by the tourism authority. The announcement comes after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Wonsan last weekend, when Mr Lavrov reportedly said he thought Russian nationals will be 'increasingly eager' to visit the tourist destination. State media in the hermit kingdom last month reported that construction of a large tourist zone in the east coast city had been completed. The zone had been driven by Kim for years to promote tourism, and the supreme leader attended the tourist area's inaugural ceremony with 'great satisfaction,' KCNA news agency said. Development plans for zone have ballooned since they were first announced in 2014. Kim has said the country will construct more large-scale tourist zones swiftly, according to state media. North Korea previously sealed its borders in 2020 at the beginning of the Covid pandemic but has been slowly lifting restrictions since 2023. Though North Korea has allowed Russian tourists into the country, its capital Pyongyang and other parts of the nation have remained closed to regular tourism. Tourism is among a narrow range of cash sources for the country not targeted by United Nations sanctions, but North Korea did not have a major foreign partner for the Wonsan project against the backdrop of sanctions over its weapons programmes. With Reuters
