The former chief financial officer of a southern Sydney council and a number of colleagues acted corruptly after the CFO was involved in raising more than $5 million in bogus invoices and charging more than $600,000 in personal expenditure on a council credit card, the state corruption watchdog found.
Former Botany Bay CFO Gary Goodman and a host of other council employees party to the rampant spending were found to have acted corruptly, the Independent Commission Against Corruption found in its report into Botany Bay Council on Wednesday, following a public inquiry last year.
A total of 12 other people, mostly other council employees, and a construction businessman had corrupt findings made against them; 10 of whom the ICAC will recommend the Director of Public Prosecutions consider laying charges against.
Mr Goodman's corruption extended over nearly two decades until 2015, when he was fired following the ICAC investigation.
"He knew [them] to be entirely false or for inflated amounts, and did so in each case to obtain money from the Council for his own benefit, or the benefit of others," a spokesman for the ICAC said.
During the course of explosive testimony throughout 2016, ICAC heard Mr Goodman and another senior council employee put their phones in the fridge before discussing matters relating to the investigation, while a gangrenous big toe delayed Mr Goodman's testimony.
Phoney companies filed the invoices; in other cases, invoices were submitted to councils without the knowledge of companies.
One, called CND Computers Pty Ltd, had no idea it had billed the council more than $2 million for services over five years, the ICAC said.
The invoices ended up in a bank account associated with Mr Goodman.
"[They were] party to agreements to create, false invoices to the Council for their businesses for work that they knew had not been done," the report found.
Mr Goodman had a stellar career in local government despite holding no formal qualifications.
He previously served at Ryde Council, Ku-ring-gai Council, Marrickville Council and Drummoyne Council before becoming Botany Bay's CFO in the mid-'90s.
The report recommends the Director of Public Prosecutions consider laying charges against a total of 10 people, including Mr Goodman, seven council employees and an external construction businessman, Zoran Gajic who paid Mr Goodman $2000 with the aim of improving his chance of being awarded council contracts.
REACTION TO ICAC FINDINGS
Bayside Council Administrator, Greg Wright, today released a statement following the ICAC findings.
He said the significant and systemic corruption within the former Botany Bay Council had clearly adverse effects on the provision of services to the community.
‘’It is to be hoped that the people responsible for the criminal activity will be brought to justice,’’ he said.
‘’However, it is equally important that there are concerted efforts made to return as much of the community’s money as possible to the community.
‘’The community of the former council and therefore the new community of Bayside have been deprived of the benefit, services, assets and facilities that the millions of dollars embezzled might have brought.
“It is imperative that the new Council seeks to recover as much as possible, not only as a punitive measure against the perpetrators, but to restore some value to the community.’’
He said Bayside Council had reviewed the nine recommendations from the ICAC report and has already taken steps to address those recommendations.
The council has appointed four independent members to its new Independent Audit and Risk Committee and that committee will continue to provide independent oversight and monitor progress of the Council in the key areas identified by the ICAC.