The director of a logistics company helped a crime syndicate illegally import into Melbourne about 9 million cigarettes worth an estimated $9 million, a court has been told.
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David Young, the director of Container Forwarding Services, was found guilty by a County Court jury of two charges related to the unpacking of two shipping containers on his depot in May and June 2013, it can now be reported.
However the full extent of the syndicate's offending cannot be reported, because of a court-imposed suppression order which prevents media naming two of Young's co-defendants and the extent of their
involvement.
A judge ordered media out of court on Tuesday while the two men were in the dock.
It is understood that the syndicate was investigated over the seizure of 71 tonnes of product – the equivalent of about 80 million cigarettes – by authorities in 2013.
The Australian Federal Police said in 2013 that authorities believed the total defrauded revenue – the money the federal government lost in taxes – was more than $67 million.
The tobacco is understood to have been imported from the Middle East and South-East Asia.
Young, 67, was found guilty of one charge of possessing tobacco products with an intention to defraud the revenue and one charge of attempting to possess tobacco products.
He was also found not guilty of one attempted possession charge.
After his pre-sentence hearing was adjourned on Tuesday, two co-defendants appeared before the court and their lawyers appealed for the court to be closed.
Judge David Parsons initially said a suppression order was sufficient, but was persuaded by the lawyers that the court be closed.
He ordered media and the men's supporters out of court.
The closure comes amid a sharpened focus on the amount of suppression orders being granted by the County Court despite laws that are intended to limit restrictions on court reporting.
Under the Open Courts Act, that came into effect in December 2013, media organisations are required to be given three days notice when an interested party applies for a suppression order.
But just 12 applications have reportedly been lodged with the court since in the past 21 months, while 193 suppression orders were made by judges.
