Ten former employees and contractors for the Inner West Council and Transport for NSW have been found to have engaged in corrupt conduct by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC).
The findings were handed down on Tuesday afternoon.
The findings were made against former Inner West Council senior project engineer Tony Nguyen and Transport for NSW officers Benjamin Vardanega, George Panagakis, Nima Abdi and Raja Sanber.
Business owners Seng Du Laphai, Monty Nguy and Aidan Cox, former Downer engineer Sairam Pilli, and former Downer project managers Abdal Aziz were also found to have engaged in corrupt conduct.
Downer EDI Works was a managing contractor for train station upgrades under multi-million dollar Transport for NSW (TfNSW) work programs.
No one named still works for the government.
ICAC found Mr Nguyen engaged in conduct that resulted in Inner West council contracts at times totalling more than $1 million being awarded to businesses that were owned by his friends.
Anonymous complaint leads to investigation
An anonymous complaint was made about Mr Nguyen to the Inner West Council, which was then lodged with the ICAC in 2019.
The complaint alleged Mr Nguyen used his council position to provide Mr Nguy with insider information to ensure Mr Nguy's company, Constructicon Pty Ltd, was awarded council contracts in exchange for financial benefits.
A full investigation into the matter was launched in 2020 after the commission received more information from the council early in the year.
The commission found that Mr Nguyen's corrupt dealings began when he worked as a site engineer on the rebuild of the Glenfield Junction station in 2014.
He met TfNSW employees Mr Abdi and Mr Sanber around this time.
Mr Abdi was found by ICAC to have manipulated the tender process to ensure the contract for remediation work for the station's car park was awarded to a company owned by himself, Mr Nguyen and Mr Sanber.
ICAC found that the work was then subcontracted to another company and the cost was "marked up" by $125,000, which was split between the trio.
From 2016 to 2020, Mr Nguyen engaged in collusive tendering schemes with multiple council subcontractors, ICAC found.
These schemes included dummy bidding, collusive tendering and order splitting, according to ICAC's findings.
Mr Nguyen's company involved in multiple projects
In 2018, Mr Nguyen became the director of RJS Infrastucture Pty Ltd while he was still in his council role.
Mr Abdi and Mr Aziz were silent partners in this business.
ICAC found that Mr Aziz had also secured his position as Downer project manager after Mr Abdi provided a false reference.
RJS Infrastructure was intended to be used to tender for Downer subcontracts on projects at various train stations.
ICAC found that one senior project manager tried to warn Transport for NSW directors about the legitimacy of RJS Infrastructure while work was being carried out.
These concerns were dismissed.
As the scope of the investigation broadened, the commission made corrupt findings against the other workers and contractors who were involved in TfNSW projects and programs.
Nine corruption prevention recommendations have been made to TfNSW to enhance the organisation's systems in the wake of the findings.
The Commission also recommends the state government consider a debarment scheme to assist public authorities to identify suppliers that have had previous issues with misconduct or breaches of relevant requirements.
Inner West Council and Transport for NSW accept recommendations
In a statement, Inner West Council said it welcomed the findings made by the commission and had already implemented "various enhancements to relevant systems to improve corruption prevention".
"The findings and recommendations outlined in the ICAC report will be reported to Council as well as the Audit Risk and Improvement Committee," the council said.
TfNSW said that it "actively assisted" the commission during the investigation and accepted all recommendations made in the report.
"The department accepts all recommendations and has already taken various steps to mitigate the fraud and corruption risks identified," a statement read.
"The contract and services of the Transport for NSW officers identified were terminated prior to the start of the public hearing."
ICAC is seeking the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on whether any prosecution should commence against nine of those named in the findings.
The DPP will determine whether any criminal charges should be laid.
