An Adelaide woman has been charged over an alleged $1.6 million NDIS fraud scheme after federal investigators raided her home in the affluent suburb of Parkside.
The 42-year-old National Disability Insurance Agency employee is accused of accessing confidential information belonging to dozens of NDIS participants and passing it to disability service providers.
Police allege she had undisclosed associations with the providers and that information was used in a scheme involving taxpayer-funded payments.
The woman was arrested at the property, where cash was seized. The raid on October 21 was part of a nationwide crackdown on alleged fraud across several federal government programmes.
NDIS fraud allegations form part of wider investigation
Five people have been charged following Operation Integrity Fusion, a co-ordinated investigation involving the Australian Federal Police and the federal Government’s Fraud Fusion Taskforce.
Authorities executed 26 search warrants across Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, the Central Coast and regional Queensland as part of seven investigations. Investigators say they have identified up to $235 million in actual and potential fraudulent claims.
During the operation, 44 digital devices were seized, 37 cloud-based accounts were accessed and more than 28 terabytes of data were collected.
Police also seized more than $120,000 in cash, $15,000 in silver bullion, $11,000 in gold coins and jewellery valued at about $60,000.
Authorities allege those charged unlawfully obtained personal or government-held information before claiming payments and benefits for services that were either not provided or only partially delivered.
The wider investigation involves Services Australia, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs and the Department of Education, although the allegations involving the Parkside woman relate solely to the NDIS.
AFP Acting Detective Superintendent Stephen Raper said fraud against government programmes ultimately came at the expense of taxpayers.
“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,” he said.
“We continue to work with our partners in the Fraud Fusion Taskforce to stop targeted fraud which steals the money of honest and hard-working Australians.”
An NDIA spokesperson said protecting participants and safeguarding scheme funding remained a priority.
“NDIS funding is for participant supports, not the pockets of those seeking to exploit the scheme,” the spokesperson said.
The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission said providers attempting to exploit the system should expect strong regulatory scrutiny. Investigations remain ongoing and further arrests have not been ruled out.
