The peak organization of poker machines clubs and operators in Australia’s New South Wales has filed a suit against a former employee who exposed an alarming money laundering problem earlier this year. Troy Stolz is accused of breaching a confidentiality agreement he signed while working for the association.
ClubsNSW, a trade organization representing nearly 1,200 RSL, sporting and other clubs in the state, is now suing Troy Stolz for giving an internal ClubsNSW board document to independent Federal MP Andrew Wilkie. The news was reported this week by ABC News, which previously talked to Mr Stolz, a former anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism finance (AML/CTF) compliance auditor at ClubsNSW.
In February, MP Andrew Wilkie revealed in a Parliament speech that up to 95 per cent of registered clubs in New South Wales (NSW) were operating illegally. According to the paper he received by Mr Stolz, most of the 770 clubs that were full reporting entities were not in compliance with the federal anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. When Wilkie attempted to table the document in Parliament, he was blocked by the Government, a move he described as a “cover-up” by major parties.
The internal board document was written by an executive at ClubsNSW in May 2019 and leaked by Stolz. It was then obtained by several media outlets, including The Sydney Morning Herald, which talked to the former AML/CTF compliance auditor. According to him, the staff at smaller clubs were not trained to identify suspicious people and activity.
Customers could carry huge amounts of cash – $80,000 in their pockets or up to $250,000 in a small backpack, and were willing to lose up to 30 per cent while laundering the money. They loaded the poker machines with $30,000 in cash, played for a while, and then withdrew their money back. Even when staff reported suspicious activity to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), the government agency rarely took action, says Stolz.
Legal Battle between ClubsNSW and Its Former Employee
ClubsNSW is the peak body representing more than 1,000 alcohol and gambling clubs across New South Wales, the state which is home to almost half of Australia’s poker machines. The trade association is suing Troy Stolz for leaking the internal board paper. According to them, he signed a confidentiality agreement when he started working for them. He was in charge of the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism finance operations at ClubsNSW between 2014 and September 2019.
However, Stolz is currently taking legal action against the organization for around $2 million for breaching the Fair Work Act. He claims that during his employment at ClubsNSW, the association has participated in multiple violations of the law, including bullying, sham contracting, underpayment, and more. He is also seeking compensation for character defamation, accusing ClubsNSW CEO Anthony Ball and its ClubSAFE manager Jim Terrie of ruining his reputation.
After Stolz quit his job in September last year, he has not been able to find a job. According to him, the pokie clubs have blacklisted him, preventing him from finding employment in the state. The lawsuit is for $2 million for damages in lost earnings and backpay. With this new case against him, ClubsNSW said they were “defending themselves” against the legal action taken by Stolz. Meanwhile, he and his wife had agreed to hand over their mobile phones and computers to be examined as requested by ClubsNSW.
- Author
Daniel Williams
