New South Wales’ (NSW) chief regulatory body, Liquor and Gaming NSW, has come under increased scrutiny after the agency released a number of internal documents to the state government August 4 that revealed several potential shortcomings.
The 38 total documents were released five hours after the deadline first set by parliament and only after the agency first attempted to withhold them. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, NSW Crime Commissioner Michael Barnes confirmed that the documents in question had not been released during a commission investigation last year.
According to the materials disclosed, the agency allegedly sent messages to clubs and bars warning them about compliance checks beforehand, partnered with at least one club that was heavily suspected to be involved in money laundering and intentionally reduced the resources of its money laundering investigative unit during periods when the activity was suspected to be especially rampant.
One of the most noteworthy findings from the documents was an email from February 2022 from the agency’s director of investigations to the director of compliance, in which the former asked, ““Is there a conflict that we know that [redacted] club is the largest money laundering club in NSW, and we are partnering with them on a money laundering initiative?”
In a statement to the Herald, Liquor and Gaming asserted that the employee no longer worked for the agency and their opinion was not representative of the whole. The agency also noted that the club in question had never been found to be in violation of anti-money laundering laws.
With regard to the letters sent to venues warning them about upcoming checks, the agency said that the practice was commonplace.
At a press conference in Wagga Wagga August 5, NSW Premier Chris Minns called the allegations “hugely concerning,” and said that the scandal “needs to be thoroughly investigated and the NSW Government will do everything we can to partner with organizations that are looking into that particular issue.”
Per the Herald, Minns lamented the fact that allegations such as these are harmful to the public’s trust in the agency. “There needs to be community confidence that the laws that are in place already are being observed and complied with by pubs and clubs in NSW,” the premier said.
