Liam Walsh
Verified- Investigations Reporter, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)
Australia, Brisbane, Občina Šentjur
Reporter Australian Financial Review. Ex-Courier-Mail in Qld, Mainichi Daily News in Japan. liam.walsh@afr.com.au / liamwalshreporter@protonmail.com or post 👇
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Articles by Liam Walsh
Queensland government corporation reneges on Brisbane sign's Indigenous art proposal
A Queensland government-backed corporation went back on approval to decorate the Brisbane sign in Aboriginal artwork. The ABC can reveal the proposed artwork was quietly axed despite being earlier budgeted and approved. The decision has amplified perceptions that Indigenous voices in state activities are being erased. A state government-backed corporation reneged on approval to decorate the tourism hotspot Brisbane sign in Aboriginal artwork during an Indigenous arts festival, the ABC can reveal.
Former Cancer Council Queensland research boss alleges bullying amid turbulent workplace relationship with CEO
A research boss at Queensland's peak cancer charity has alleged its chief executive bullied her, and their workplace relationship became so dysfunctional she was told to not contact him directly, according to a lawsuit. The lawsuit filed by Sandi Hayes, former director of research at the Cancer Council Queensland, marks the latest upheaval for a charity supporting thousands of patients and raising tens of millions of dollars annually.
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate apologises for swearing, doubles down on recollection of dinner with Donald Trump
Under-fire Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate says he had a conversation about tariffs with US President Donald Trump just before dinner at Mar-a-Lago — despite the Trump Organization claiming no such dinner happened. The outspoken mayor today also apologised to Australian viewers and reporters for swearing on Tuesday at a journalist during questioning about the trip, which has resulted in conflicting accounts of a high-profile dinner at Mar-a-Lago. Loading...
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate’s Mar-a-Lago dinner with Donald Trump under spotlight
Earlier this year, Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate declared he had dinner with US President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. The mayor told a Gold Coast radio show he and Mr Trump shared tomahawk steaks and "expensive wine". But the ABC has uncovered conflicting recollections about the dinner. Tom Tate, mayor of Australia's glitziest city the Gold Coast, was in the middle of expensive ratepayer-backed trip around the world, the icing of which would be dinner with US President Donald Trump.
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate’s Mar-a-Lago dinner with Donald Trump under spotlight
1 day ago Donald Trump arrived in Ireland for a two-day trip focusing on the Irish Open and discussions with the country's leadership. The 80-year-old-president touched down in Dublin this morning — Saturday, September 12 — where he met with President Catherine Connolly and Prime Minister Micheál Martin at …
Corporate Travel Management under pressure again after failing to pass on tens of millions of dollars in margins to clients
An Australian travel giant arranging trips for governments and big business is in hot water after pocketing tens of millions of dollars in margins on air tickets and rebates from suppliers. Corporate Travel Management is now refunding the amounts to customers because contracts obliged the company to hand on some of this money to clients. For other customers, the problem is that contracts did not spell out what to do with the margins and so the cash is being handed back.
Corporate Travel Management’s $100 million overcharging scandal and PwC auditor concerns unmasked
An Australian travel giant embroiled in a $100 million overcharging scandal for refugee accommodation was invoicing a government for more rooms than a hotel actually had, the ABC can reveal. Brisbane-based Corporate Travel Management, a former share-market darling valued at $2 billion, was also double-billing the UK government during the refugee program or charging for exclusive use of hotels when no exclusivity existed.
Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie champions homes where landholders include donating developer
Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie personally approved town planning changes championing house development in a zone where landowners included a developer who had just donated $50,000 for a private lunch with the politician. Mr Bleijie's role in the changes, which planning experts say potentially boost land values, has raised concerns about perceptions of conflicts of interest for politicians and how these are handled.
One Nation vows to hand in three years of financial statements it failed to submit in Queensland
One Nation has vowed to hand in three years' worth of tardy accounts that have threatened to see the political party's hometown entity cancelled by regulators. The vow comes after the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) confirmed that One Nation Queensland Division Inc had until midway through next month to file audited accounts for the financial years from 2023 to 2025.
Wannabe Olympic MMA group tried gifting $82,000 cognac to Brisbane Games committee
An upstart mixed-martial arts association headed by a Singaporean rich-lister has lavished incredibly priced alcohol, including an $82,000 bottle of cognac, on Brisbane's key Olympic decision-making body. The gifts are so exorbitant the Brisbane Organising Committee for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games has not kept them, even handing into Customs another two bottles of wine worth $20,000 rather than pay the import duties.
Former Queensland ALP government awarded $15m contract to politically connected company despite 'red flags' Original
Queensland's former state government awarded an ultimately doomed $15 million contract to a politically connected cybersecurity company despite a quiverful of red flags, a taxpayer-funded autopsy of the decision reveals. The red flags included the winning company, Cryptoloc Holdings, submitting financial records supposedly from an accountant that auditors could not find records of.
Former wife of tobacco baron alleges horrific life entangled in illegal trade
Kawther Salih recalls knowing nothing about being married, other than that you wore a white dress, when she became the teen bride of a man who later pleaded guilty to helping fuel Australia's illegal nicotine trade. From that arranged marriage, Ms Salih says, the situation spiralled into an abusive relationship that saw her subjugated into working in the underground tobacco industry. "It was like forced labour on women … it was a nasty situation," she tells the ABC.
Developers with state-tied projects donate to Queensland politicians after ban lifted
Developers with projects in special Queensland government development zones have started throwing money at the ruling state Liberal National Party after the loosening of political donation laws. Since mid-March this year, developers have been allowed to donate to state politics after the LNP overturned an eight-year ban. More than $170,000 has since been pumped into politics by developers or aligned companies, according to Electoral Commission of Queensland records and donor declarations.
Developer David Trask bids $50,000 donation for a lunch with Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie
A developer has bid $50,000 for a lunch with Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie, whose state government agency oversees land in which the developer has an interest. The developer, David Trask, made the successful bid as a donation at lunch on Friday for the ruling Liberal National Party, held at the Brisbane Convention Centre and dubbed "Delivering for Queensland Industry Update".
RACQ denies misleading customers with insurance notices amid ASIC Federal Court lawsuit
investigative reporter Liam Walsh When the corporate regulator accused RACQ of misleading customers with insurance renewal notices, the organisation issued an emphatic public apology. The insurer had been sending notices that compared a customer's upcoming premium against a "last period premium" — even though that was not necessarily what that customer had actually paid. The organisation ceased the practice and proclaimed publicly last year it "was not in keeping with our high standards".
Fake document claims emerge in Corporate Travel's $240 million UK overcharging scandal
Brisbane-based Corporate Travel Management has detailed a laundry list of concerns about a ballooning scandal including that it had not returned refunds, had kept customer overpayments, overcharged clients and even "amended" audit evidence. The problems embroil the UK arm of the $2 billion Corporate Travel and stem back to 2019, with a key impacted client being the British government.
Cigno Australia, BSF Solutions and directors fined $7 million over payday lending scheme
An illegal payday lending scheme's companies and directors have been fined $7 million, with the penalties softened partly because the men in charge had sought top-shelf legal advice. Fines of $3 million were issued in the Federal Court to both Gold Coast-based Cigno Australia and BSF Solutions. Their respective sole directors, former Super Rugby halfback Mark Swanepoel and Brenton Harrison, also received $500,000 fines each.
AACo spared investigation into cattle thirst deaths after reassuring regulators
Queensland's government ruled out investigating luxury beef giant AACo over mass deaths of its cattle from thirst, after receiving reassurances from the company that problems had been fixed. The lack of investigation into deaths at the $700 million beef business has been slammed as "completely unacceptable" by a legal expert who argued industry had captured government regulators.
Developer Chris Pinzone dropped from Paul Pisasale corruption probe, embroiled in farm payments dispute
A developer central to one of Australia's most spectacular mayoral corruption convictions has had a criminal charge against him dropped, the ABC can reveal. But developer Chris Pinzone has since been pursued in separate civil cases, including one involving $894,000 paid from a sputtering Victorian dairy farm whose directors included a jailed Queensland ex-solicitor.
David Young's rocky two-decade quest to build a Trump Tower on the Gold Coast
David Young, the developer envisioning a Gold Coast Trump Tower, had $7.96 cash to his name and was signing himself into financial oblivion. It was 2010 and his debts were crippling. That included entrepreneurial bling: $560,000 owed on four loans for Ferraris, a BMW 750i and a Porsche Boxster. They were among $32.6 million in liabilities listed in his own bankruptcy filing, revealed today by the ABC. Most of that debt came from a property financier.
David Young's rocky two-decade quest to build a Trump Tower on the Gold Coast
7 hours ago How does a modern male politician stay in President Trump’s inner circle? By trading in dignity for some ill-fitting dress shoes, it seems. As reported by the Wall Street Journal earlier this week, President Donald Trump has a penchant for doling out $145 Florsheim Oxfords to cabinet members and …
Illegal tobacco retailer's $1.5 million fine reduced to $250,000 after legal appeal
One of Australia's biggest illegal tobacco and vape fines has been drastically cut. The penalty against Tobacco Shed Pty Ltd, which had a string of stores busted selling illegal goods, was cut from $1.49 million to $250,000 after a legal appeal. The Emerald District Court ruled the initial fine — far beyond what prosecutors had even sought — was excessive and errors occurred in sentencing. The appeal marks the latest tussle involving the ballooning illicit tobacco trade and authorities.
Trump Tower developer David Young ran business that collapsed owing $28 million
Exclusive by Queensland investigative reporter Liam Walsh and Glen Norris The businessman behind a bold plan to build a Trump Tower on the Gold Coast ran a development business that collapsed owing $28 million to creditors, the ABC can reveal. Developer David Young also was largely "uncontactable" and failed to file key financial information following the 2010 collapse of the company, according to a liquidator's report.
Trump Tower developer Altus Property Group's David Young has twice gone bankrupt
Exclusive by Liam Walsh and Glen Norris The property developer behind a startling proposal to build a Trump Tower on the Gold Coast is a businessman who has gone bankrupt twice, the ABC can reveal. David Young of Altus Property Group this week stunned the Australian property scene by unveiling he had signed a deal with the Trump Organization for a 340-metre tall, six-star luxury complex in the heart of Surfers Paradise.
Businessman and bad gambler Sam Kanjo linked to Australia's biggest illegal tobacco fine
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) are questioning a repeat bankrupt businessman, and he is lashing out. Gold Coast-based Sam Kanjo is undergoing a secret examination involving proceeds of crime allegations against his wife. The examination's transcript almost immediately starts with the AFP's lawyer putting "on the record" events just before proceedings officially started. Businessman Sam Kanjo was previously sole director of Tobacco Shed Pty Ltd.
Corporate Travel Management founder Jamie Pherous resigns amid overcharging scandal
Jamie Pherous, the founder of the multi-billion dollar Queensland travel empire Corporate Travel Management, has resigned amid a scandal involving the overcharging of clients in the UK by about $150 million. Mr Pherous will remain with the company for six months as a consultant. The company's chief commercial officer Ana Pedersen will replace Mr Pherous as acting CEO while a "comprehensive search" is done to find his permanent replacement.
Neurosurgeon Richard Laherty among five charged in Queensland crime and corruption investigation
A neurosurgeon specialising in spinal surgery is among five people facing serious charges over a Queensland scheme allegedly involving kickbacks for medical devices, the ABC can reveal. The state's Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) announced in December that five people involved in the health industry were facing charges following its investigation, codenamed Barzona, with the Queensland Office of the Health Ombudsman.
A $7m unpaid tobacco fine and online sales emerge amid government crack down on illegal trade
Illicit tobacco operators are chalking up unpaid fines so large that one player alone owes more than $7 million, the ABC can reveal. Another five operators owed between $1 million and $2 million as of October this year — amounts sitting as unpaid fines with Queensland's state debt collection agency. The size of debts is the latest indication of hurdles for authorities who are ramping up enforcement and penalties against a blossoming illicit tobacco trade.
Brisbane-based barrister Matthew Hickey being pursued by ATO over long-standing $2.7 million tax bill
Matthew Hickey is an elite Kings Counsel barrister —a thoughtful orator who works on some of Queensland's most important legal inquiries. He is an accomplished operatic singer who once toured Europe and helped produce platinum-selling albums. His services to the law and music are such that he was awarded an Order of Australia medal in 2021. But the 50-year-old has also been quietly facing an Australian Taxation Office (ATO) battle.
Secret government audit reveals how big travel companies can overcharge clients
Travel management companies have pocketed tens of millions of dollars in commissions and hidden mark-ups when handling accounts for big clients, a secret government audit has warned. The audit details can be revealed as Brisbane-based Corporate Travel Management reels following revelations it will have to refund UK customers — including the British government — up to 77.6 million pounds ($157 million) that was overcharged.
Corporate Travel Management embroiled in overcharging scandal potentially worth more than $100 million
One of Australia's leading travel businesses, Corporate Travel Management, is embroiled in an overcharging scandal potentially worth more than $100 million. The company, whose shares have been suspended since August, helps arrange travel bookings for clients including Wesfarmers and the Australian government. The company has flagged that customers will have to be refunded but it has not spelled out how much cash is required.
Big fines, little paid - the battle in Australia's illicit tobacco market
The apartments towering 40 stories over downtown Dubai are a world away from a street-level tobacco shop on a dull urban block of Queensland's Hervey Bay. The common thread is 36-year-old Mohammed Alfalahi. According to Queensland Health court documents, Dubai-based Alfalahi was allegedly operating a flagrant five-store illicit tobacco operation around the regional town and would just wear the cost of government fines. He used encrypted messages.
Government auditors suspected lab was conducting shonky tests on infrastructure projects
Secret surveillance has revealed Queensland government auditors suspected a laboratory allowed to work on taxpayer-funded infrastructure projects was producing shonky test results. It marks the latest in false testing claims to strike Australia's multi-billion dollar industry. Laboratories provide crucial construction materials testing on projects ranging from highway building to concreting in tunnels.
Brisbane storm electrocution of Manendra Kopparthi raises concerns about trees and powerlines
When Manendra Kopparthi tragically removed a fallen branch on a wet Queensland road, he was repeating a good-citizen ethos for which the 30-year-old was renowned. This was the kind of guy whom, his wife recalls, had only months into their marriage seen an injured, stray dog. "He took that [dog] to a veterinary hospital," she told the ABC. He was an information technology professional. A good son. A generous man. Then in December 2023, a massive thunderstorm pummelled Brisbane.
Queensland government drops special flood measures in Woolloongabba ahead of 2032 Olympics
Special flood protection measures have been dropped to allow more development under a new state government plan for Brisbane's 2032 Olympic hotspot suburb of Woolloongabba. The changes included dumping tougher restrictions for some developments to build to the risk of a one-in-100-year flood. A special zone flood guideline has also vanished.
RACQ apologises to customers for problems with insurance renewal notices amid potential multimillion dollar lawsuit
RACQ has apologised for problems with insurance renewal notices that have triggered a potential multimillion dollar lawsuit from regulators, but says mysteries remain about what went wrong. "To you, and all our members — I'm sorry. This matter is certainly not in line with our high standards or the experience we strive to offer," RACQ chief executive David Carter said at the organisation's annual general meeting on Tuesday.
Donald Day Jr, US conspiracy theorist connected to Wieambilla killers, agrees to watered-down plea deal
Court documents show Arizona man Donald Day Jr has agreed to plead guilty to possessing guns while a felon, but other charges will be dropped. His charges drew international interest due to his connection with the Queensland trio who shot two police officers and a neighbour in 2022. A court must approve the plea deal.
ASIC accuses RACQ of misleading customers over insurance renewal notices in Federal Court action
The corporate watchdog has sued an insurer over sending out 570,000 renewal notices that it claimed did not properly compare new prices to earlier premiums. In a Federal Court filing, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) claims the renewal notices sent to insurance customers of RACQ were false and misleading.
Childcare giant G8 cut unorthodox $26 million deal with Darren Misquitta's Genius despite warnings
The warnings lights were flashing for giant childcare operator G8 Education. It had an unorthodox $26 million deal on the line to sell centres to Genius Education, a venture whose subsequent collapse would strand staff and parents, and whose boss Darren Misquitta would later plead guilty to receiving suspected proceeds of crime unconnected to the child care industry.
Inside the illegal tobacco trade -secret rooms, fire bombings and bags full of cash
A run-down wood-panelled housing commission home doesn't seem like the kind of place a tobacco baroness would be living. The house in Brisbane had a couple of motorbikes and a red SUV parked in the driveway, a few bits of garbage strewn on the lawn and some people inside. And a middle-aged woman listed as residing there was marked on business registers as being behind 14 stores.
International ATM giant NCR Atleos begins removing machines from tobacco stores after ABC investigation
Giant international ATM supplier NCR Atleos will remove more than 50 machines from tobacco stores across Australia after an ABC investigation revealed how ATM companies were fuelling illegal tobacco and vape sales. The New York Stock Exchange-listed company, which boasts of having the world's largest ATM network, has reviewed its fleet following the revelations, including how private ATM companies had cut deals with local tobacco criminals.
Star Entertainment Group signs on-again, off-again takeover deal with Hong Kong partners
Gaming giant Star Entertainment has signed a takeover deal with its controversial Hong Kong-based partners, allowing it to offload its stake in Brisbane's Queen's Wharf development. An unnamed operator is expected to come in to manage the Brisbane casino at some point. The deal is subject to multiple hurdles including regulatory checks.
ATMs owned by New York Stock Exchange-listed company found in illegal tobacconists
The sign is covered in black grime, the bent ramshackle corrugated roof wouldn't be out of place atop an outback shanty and the registered owner is a jailed fraudster. The Bowen Hills Tobacconist and Gift shop on the edge of Brisbane's inner city hardly seems the kind of place that a $3 billion multinational financial corporation would be doing business — especially when the store's product line includes illegal cigarettes.
How Queensland Premier David Crisafulli has gone from dazzling property flipper to secret business trouble
Australians love a tale of property renovation, but one story that's little known is that Queensland Premier David Crisafulli was once a successful house flipper. Between 2005 and 2009, his private family company, Crisafulli Financial Services, bought and sold seven north Queensland houses in rapid, profitable deals. Those successful deals make a disastrous loss on another property in 2022, when he was opposition leader, unusual.
Queensland government questions Labor’s $10 million funding boost for Cryptoloc Holdings contract
The Queensland government has questioned how the former Labor administration increased an ultimately disastrous cybersecurity contract by $10 million in the months before the deal was awarded to a politically connected technology company. Cryptoloc Holdings won a contract in September last year to provide cybersecurity assistance to Queensland small businesses, with the successful tender announced the day before the state government entered caretaker mode for the election.
ATM supplier atm2go begins removes machines from stores linked to illicit tobacco trade
A second ATM supplier – whose machines were once used by a cannabis kingpin – has begun pulling out its devices from stores linked to the illicit tobacco trade. The move by Queensland-based atm2go follows an ABC investigation which revealed how ATM companies were fuelling predominantly cash sales of illegal cigarettes by placing their private machines in stores.
Macquarie Group-backed ATM provider begins removing machines from suspected illegal tobacco stores
One of Australia’s largest private ATM suppliers, Macquarie Group-backed Next Payments, is removing more than 40 of its machines from suspected illegal tobacco stores. Next Payments chief executive Tim Wildash announced the move after an ABC investigation found ATM companies were cutting deals with tobacco criminals and installing their machines in high turnover illegal cigarette shops.
Private ATMs in tobacco shops face being cut off from payment network EFTEX following ABC investigation
Payment processing company EFTEX will stop facilitating transactions from ATMs situated inside tobacco stores and other "high-risk" businesses. It comes after an ABC investigation revealed major private ATM suppliers were targeting the illegal tobacco industry. Financial crime expert Neil Browne says it is a "step in the right direction," and he would like to see more payment providers follow suit.
Liquidator probes transfer of Queensland government funds to bank account of Cryptoloc Holdings founder Jamie Wilson
Liquidators are probing how money for a $15 million Queensland government project was transferred from the contract-winning cybersecurity company to its founder's bank account within 24 hours of the funds arriving. The funds transfer to Cryptoloc Holdings founder Jamie Wilson, who once wooed the state's top politicians and pop stars, is under investigation as a potential "fraudulent" transaction, according to a liquidator's report.
ATM suppliers atm2go and Next Payments in battle for tobacco crime figure's business, court filings reveal
When Iraqi-born businessman Hasheem Jamal Al Deleymi ramped up an illegal tobacco operation in Queensland, police weren't the only ones taking notice. Two major private automated teller machine companies, atm2go and Next Payments, also appeared to have clocked the contraband enterprise. The ATM suppliers went on to became entangled in a turf war to supply their machines to tobacco shops associated with Al Deleymi.
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