Australian Government fraud investigation Operation Integrity Fusion, Digi Mart USA News (Australia): The Australian Government’s Fraud Fusion Taskforce (FFT) has charged five people with fraud-related offences during a coordinated national operation targeting entities that allegedly took $235 million in fraudulent Australian Government Payments and Programs (AGPPs) claims.
During the operation, named Operation Integrity Fusion, investigators seized 44 digital devices and 37 cloud-based accounts containing more than 28 terabytes of data from 26 search warrants across Adelaide, the Central Coast, Melbourne, rural Queensland and Sydney. Investigators also confiscated more than $120,000 in cash, $15,000 in silver bullion, $11,000 in gold coins and approximately $60,000 worth of jewellery.
Operation Integrity Fusion relates to alleged fraud across four Australian Government agencies: the Department of Education, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) and Services Australia. The period of action was coordinated with the whole-of-Australian Government Financial Crime and Money Laundering (FCML) Working Group over a three-month period.
The operational activity involved 108 police officers and 156 personnel from the participating agencies and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. It was further supported by members of the NSW Police Force, Queensland Police Service, South Australia Police and Victoria Police.
Across seven investigations, authorities identified approximately $235 million in actual and potential fraud.
It will be alleged that those charged defrauded government agencies by unlawfully obtaining personal or government-held information and claiming government-funded rebates and benefits for services that were either not provided or only partially delivered. Investigations remain ongoing, and further arrests have not been ruled out.
AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Stephen Raper said defrauding government agencies is a deliberate effort to take money that ultimately comes from the taxpayer. “Service providers are there to support Australians who need it, and while the majority do the right thing, there are groups in our country who selfishly rort the system for their own personal gain,” Raper said.
A Department of Education spokesperson said childcare subsidies are for those who need them. “Ensuring providers correctly claim Child Care Subsidy protects the integrity of the early childhood education and care sector,” the spokesperson said.
Anonymous tip-offs about childcare fraud can be made online through the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) tip-off form.
A Department of Veterans’ Affairs spokesperson said funding for veterans’ health and wellbeing is there to support those who have served the nation, not to be exploited for personal gain. “The overwhelming majority of providers do the right thing, regrettably some do not.
Where we identify suspected fraud or serious non-compliance, DVA will act,” the spokesperson said.
An NDIA spokesperson said safeguarding NDIS participants was vital. “NDIS funding is for participant supports, not the pockets of those seeking to exploit the scheme,” the spokesperson said.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commissioner Louise Glanville said providers who seek to exploit NDIS funding for personal gain should expect strong regulatory scrutiny.
A Services Australia spokesperson said the Fraud Fusion Taskforce helps agencies detect and disrupt serious fraud and protects Australians. “Through the Fraud Fusion Taskforce, we’re disrupting scammers who attempt to steal people’s personal information to access their myGov accounts and commit fraud,” the spokesperson said.
Operation Integrity Fusion consisted of several individual operations. Operation Hawk, led by Victoria Police’s Hamilton Crime Investigation Unit and the NDIA, concerns a man who allegedly defrauded the NDIS of more than $700,000 over a two-year period by submitting false invoices through two businesses he established.
On 26 August, 2026, Victoria Police charged him with making false documents, dishonestly causing loss to the NDIS of more than $700,000, and dealing with proceeds of crime. He is expected to appear before Horsham Magistrates’ Court on 3 December, 2026.
Operation Rhodonite is an investigation into an NDIS network in which four providers and one plan manager allegedly claimed $100 million from the NDIS since 2019. Investigations identified activity consistent with money laundering methods, including ATM cash withdrawals of about $5.4 million, gift card purchases of about $1.1 million and purchases of gold bullion.
No people have been arrested and investigations are ongoing.
Operation Fortis-Hailstorm concerns a Sydney-based Family Day Care service suspected of claiming Child Care Subsidy payments for care that was not provided or was overstated. The service received about $4 million in CCS payments since January 2024, and investigators are examining alleged false attendance claims and inflated hours of care.
Operation Cedar is an investigation into three Sydney-based Chinese nationals who allegedly harvested user details through an SMS phishing scam and then used them to redirect social security payments. Since March 2025, the syndicate allegedly compromised about 2,000 Centrelink records and made more than 3,000 fraudulent transactions, resulting in an identified loss to the Commonwealth of about $2.5 million.
Two women, aged 23 and 22, and a man, aged 26, were each charged with one count of dealing in proceeds of crime, and appeared before Downing Centre Court on 8 October, 2026.
Operation Evergreen is an investigation into a 34-year-old man over alleged fraud against the Department of Veterans’ Affairs totaling more than $29 million. It is suspected he billed the department for services not, or only partially, provided by his veterans’ support business.
No arrests have been made and investigations are ongoing.
Operation Inca-Varrakai concerns an NDIA employee who allegedly provided 78 NDIS participant records without authorisation to NDIS providers with which she had a conflict of interest. The providers have claimed $21.8 million against NDIS participant plans, generating more than $1.6 million in NDIS-funded revenue for providers operated by people known to her.
The 42-year-old Adelaide woman was charged with one count of abuse of public office and is next scheduled to appear in Adelaide Magistrates Court on 9 December, 2026.
Operation Ford-Marcos is an investigation into a syndicate suspected of defrauding the NDIS by claiming financial benefits for services not provided. Investigations involve six people of interest, 10 key providers and five secondary providers, with total claims of approximately $83 million.
It is suspected the syndicate laundered $6.7 million in cash, gold and jewellery. On 28 October, 2026, two search warrants were executed in Liverpool and Wakeley, Sydney.
