The '$4million scam' that put bikies to shame: How a childcare 'fraud boss made $60K a month - and 150 parents put their own CHILDREN'S names up to be used by the gang'
- Red Roses Family Day Care allegedly operated to scam government subsidies
- Members are accused of pretending to look after each others' children
- They allegedly used photos of kids, mocked-up play areas, and fake rosters
- Police smashed it by charging 14 women and three men with fraud
An elaborate fake childcare scheme allegedly scammed $4 million in government childcare subsidies in just eight months.
Red Roses Family Day Care purported to look after dozens of children in homes across Sydney, but police claim not a single one was actually in its care.
Instead, the more than 150 members pretended to look after each others' children and claimed the rebate of up to $146 a week per child, police allege.
An elaborate fake childcare scheme allegedly scammed $4 million in government childcare subsidies in just eight months with director Alee Farmann, 49, pocketing $60,000 a month
Farmann's brand new Range Rover was seized along with large volumes of documentation, including business records, and two electronic control devices
Rewards were so lucrative that director Alee Farmann, 49, allegedly pocketed $60,000 a month and drove a brand new Range Rover.
The syndicate is accused of going to extraordinary lengths to conceal the operation that put bikie gangs to shame.
'We saw a level of sophistication or coordination in this that we don't see in outlaw motorcycle gangs,' Acting Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith said.
'It created time sheets, it had photographs of children that were not in care. It had mock-up areas, it had an administrative structure and rostering - like anything else in a legitimate business.
'However, the whole thing was a fraud.'
The whole alleged plot came crashing down on Wednesday when police arrested 18 people in 23 raids from southwest Sydney to Wollongong
The syndicate is accused of going to extraordinary lengths to conceal the operation that put bikie gangs to shame
Assistant Commissioner Smith said the company designed processes to evade authorities and 'defeat' physical and phone auditing by the NSW Education Department, which regulates the scheme in the state.
He said if one site was audited, the rest of the syndicate would find out by the end of the day and get ready to comply with any subsequent audit.
The whole alleged plot came crashing down on Wednesday when police arrested 18 people in 23 raids from southwest Sydney to Wollongong.
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All but one of the three men aged 24, 40 and 49, and 15 women aged 21 to 44, were charged - three with directing and 14 with participating in a criminal group.
They included alleged ringleader Farmann, and Zina Mohammad, 44.
One of the women allegedly had $35,000 cash in her handbag when she was arrested at her home in South Granville.
The cash and Range Rover were seized along with large volumes of documentation, including business records, and two electronic control devices.
The more than 150 members pretended to look after each others' children and claimed the up to $146 a week per child rebate, police allege
The properties included one house that only had electricity for six days in February and never housed any children.
More than 150 parents laid claims to rebate from the federal government - each one having between three and seven children - who could be next on police hit lists.
'There are legitimate children's names and entities… they just weren't being cared for. The whole thing was a structured business,' Assistant Commissioner Smith said.
'What we've taken out yesterday were the (alleged) professional facilitators behind this syndicate and we won't rule out further interviews and we won't rule out further significant arrests.'
Police discovered a number of 'vulnerabilities' during their investigation and are working with state and federal education departments to address them.
Investigators believe there are many similar operations in NSW, and 29 people have been charged and 21 convicted in recent years.
All but one of the three men aged 24, 40 and 49, and 15 women aged 21 to 44, who were arrested were charged - three with directing and 14 with participating in a criminal group
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