Time-poor investigators blamed for not pursuing Helmy probe
A month after the complaint, Faust produced a report finding that there was insufficient evidence to support the complaint regarding Helmy’s behavior and recommended no further action and the matter be closed.
In its report dated 28 August 2023, it concluded that Helmy’s alleged conduct in relation to the tender for the two panels “does not indicate corrupt conduct and therefore does not require reporting to the ICAC”. Grech reviewed and signed the evaluation report.
Under intense questioning on Thursday, Faust said the situation he faced at the time meant he was not available to delve into the complaint.
“We are time poor [and] “Our resources were insufficient,” he said, and continued: “Therefore, we were looking at these at their true value. “We were reviewing them, re-reading them and giving feedback.”
Looking back, Faust acknowledged that he thought the handling of the complaint was inadequate, but maintained that it was sufficient under the circumstances at the time.
“If I did [been] “Given time and resources, I could have gone further,” he said.
Faust, who has nearly 15 years of experience investigating fraud and corruption, has been with Transport for NSW since November 2021.
NSW Transport Senior Investigations Manager Paul Grech joined the Independent Commission Against Corruption investigation on Thursday.Credit: ICAC
Later on Thursday, ICAC counsel assisting SC Rob Ranken also suggested to Grech that Graham was the only person raising a red flag about Helmy, but no one tried to clarify to him what his complaint might be.
Grech said in response: “We were kind of blindsided by Ms. Bashir’s response and we relied too much on that response because of the workload.”
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Grech also agreed that, in hindsight, investigators should have talked to Graham about his complaint.
When his complaint was filed in 2023, there were a total of 13 investigators in the agency’s fraud and corruption unit. Like other parts of Transport for NSW, the fraud and corruption unit is now operating in caretaker mode due to an agency-wide restructuring that will result in a total of 1300 job losses.
ICAC’s investigation into the kickback scandal was prompted by a tip from an external source, not anyone at Transport for NSW.
Helmy, 38, is alleged to have pocketed $11.5 million in kickbacks from contractors, including bundles of cash and gold bullion, in exchange for getting work at inflated prices. At least four other NSW Transport officials are alleged to have played a role in the kickback deals.
The public inquiry into the kickbacks is part of the ICAC investigation known as Operation Wyvern, which is the fourth investigation into corruption in procurement processes at Transport for NSW since 2019. Hearings will continue next Tuesday.
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