A mother-and-daughter duo – one claiming to be a fortune teller and a feng shui master – have been charged over allegedly scamming almost A$70m ($46m; £35m) from “vulnerable” Vietnamese targets in Australia.
The mother, 53, was arrested in the exclusive suburb of Dover Heights in Sydney on Wednesday, along with her daughter, 25. Police say they were an intrinsic part of a “highly sophisticated” fraud and money laundering syndicate.
The mother allegedly convinced her victims to take out loans, keeping a share herself, by telling them she foresaw a “billionaire” in their future.
She was refused bail due to appear in court on Thursday. Her daughter was granted bail with a court date in January.
The mother faces 39 charges including directing the activities of a criminal group and dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception.
Her daughter was charged with seven offences including recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime and being part of a criminal group.
During the early-morning arrest at the pair’s multi-million-dollar mansion, police seized financial documents, mobile phones, luxury handbags, a 40 gram gold bar worth A$10,000 ($6,500; £5,000) and A$6,600 in casino chips.
Police said the mother was an influential and trusted member of her community and as a fortune teller, she would give readings to clients, some who divulged they were in financial hardship.
She would then predict a billionaire would come to their aid, and this “would happen sooner rather than later” if they took out a loan.
As part of Wednesday’s arrest, investigators also froze about A$15m in assets, adding to A$60m in assets already seized from a wider probe into the syndicate that started last year.
Police launched Strike Force Myddleton to investigate a criminal group allegedly using stolen identities to get loans for “ghost cars” – luxury cars that did not exist.
“What began as an investigation into fraudulent car financing has expanded into uncovering one of the most sophisticated financial crime syndicates I have seen in my career at the helm of the Financial Crimes Squad,” said Det Supt Gordon Arbinja, commander of the financial crimes squad.
Police claim the criminal group’s activities include “large-scale personal, business and home loan fraud against multiple financial institutions”.
According to an investigation by the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), the mother-and-daughter duo are linked to what’s been dubbed the Penthouse Syndicate, as the alleged ringleader lived in an A$18m penthouse in Sydney.
Police claim the group defrauded major Australian banks of up to A$250m with allegedly corrupt bank staff approving loans to help the syndicate buy multiple properties in Sydney, according to the SMH.
More than a dozen people have already been arrested, charged with a range of offences including fraud and money laundering, in what is believed to be one of the largest such cases in Australia.
Police said they expect to make more arrests with a focus on the “professional facilitators” of the criminal group including lawyers, accountants and property developers.