Private secretary of billionaire Judith Neilson refused bail on $1m fraud charges | New South Wales

The former private secretary of billionaire philanthropist Judith Neilson has been indicted on dozens of fraud charges after allegedly using her business credit card to make more than $1 million worth of purchases, including luxury clothing, artwork and jewelry.

Annalouise Spence, 50, was refused bail after being charged with 68 counts of obtaining property by fraud at a local court hearing on Thursday.

He was arrested in Erskineville in Sydney’s inner west on Wednesday morning after officers executed search warrants at the home and a warehouse in Campbelltown, police said.

“During the search, officers located and seized luxury bags, jewellery, clothing, documents and other personal items,” New South Wales police said in a statement. he said.

Police said an investigation was launched in November last year into “allegations of fraudulent spending by an employee of the Chippendale business”.

Between March 2023 and September 2025, Spence allegedly used a business credit account to “purchase luxury and personal items, including clothing, artwork, and jewelry, without permission.”

On Thursday afternoon, the court heard the allegations of unauthorized purchases totaled $1.6 million. Police found 115 items during the search.

The police prosecutor opposed bail for Spence, who has no criminal history, on the grounds that he could interfere with witnesses connected to the alleged financial transactions. Police argued that Spence “accepted” the money by paying it back.

Spence’s lawyer, Bryan Wrench, applied for bail, saying his client, who appeared via video link, had repaid almost $850,000 to his employer, to whom he was “fully engaged” since October 2025.

He said his client had not worked since then, suffered from bipolar disorder and complex post-traumatic stress disorder, and was on the “medication shopping list” for his condition. He was discharged in November last year after spending a month in a mental health facility.

Wrench said the charging document given to Spence by police was “flawed,” a charge that appeared to be a “template” and did not identify the item’s name, description or owner’s name. Wrench said the defense only received the police facts Wednesday evening.

“We had to subscribe to the Sydney Morning Herald to get information about this. [these charges]” he told the court.

Judge Lucas Swan acknowledged the police indictment was “confusing” and that although the offenses were “all allegations at this point” the restitution appeared to be an admission of some of the charges.

Refusing bail, he said: “My assessment is that the strength of this case is overwhelming and that if he is convicted of the offenses before this court, a prison sentence will be inevitable.”

Neilson, who founded the $100 million Judith Neilson Institute in 2018, has extensive philanthropic activities and owns the White Rabbit art gallery in Chippendale.

The Institute “supports quality journalism and storytelling in Australia”, According to their website.

According to the Australian Financial Review’s 2025 rich list, Neilson’s net worth is approximately $1.2 billion.

Spence began working as Neilson’s private secretary in March 2017, according to his LinkedIn profile. Sydney Morning Herald reported On Wednesday, it was reported that the alleged “industrial scale fraud” was detected after a restructuring of Neilson’s office resulted in Spence leaving his post in September last year.

Neilson’s new executive assistant, while reviewing her employer’s accounts, reportedly noticed a $58,600 bill from a London department store for “a rare pink-gold Rolex wristwatch” from July, followed by a $21,000 bill from luxury department store Harrods. According to the Herald, Neilson, who did not wear expensive jewelry, was not in England at the time.

The article states that after contacting Neilson’s finance department, Spence apologized and refunded the money, claiming the invoices were mixed up, but further inconsistencies emerged.

The Sydney Morning Herald article alleges that after Neilson received the American Express Centurion card, or “Black Amex,” in November 2023, Spence called the company and requested an additional card in his name.

Spence allegedly spent $400,000 on travel, $335,000 on fashion items and $184,000 on jewelry. The Herald alleged Neilson transferred almost 1 million of his Qantas frequent flyer points for his own use and withdrew thousands of dollars in cash, claiming it was for overseas travel for his employer.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Neilson, who said he did not approve of Spence’s additional card, was unaware that he had paid $40,000 for Spence’s 50th birthday party, which he attended in April last year. This lot includes $1,000 in monogrammed napkins, $1,200 in an evening gown, and $10,000 in “Jimmy Choo stilettos and a matching gold evening bag.”

Neilson’s team reportedly hired a “risk and crisis manager” in November and was working with NSW police.

Police said investigations are continuing. The case was postponed to May 7. Spence did not enter a defense.