Dozens of bank cards allegedly stolen in the mail by a postal worker have charted a bizarre spending spree which police allege was part of a $1.4 million fraud.
Mauro Paul Coluzzi, 56, is accused of swiping bank cards mailed to Edgecliff, Woollahra and Double Bay in Sydney’s eastern suburbs and supplying them to two separate organised crime syndicates.
Police allege he stole the cards of 62 people, which were used to commit an estimated $1.4 million in fraud.
More than $100,000 of that spending has been laid bare in the court documents containing the allegations against Coluzzi, who was arrested last month after a nine-month investigation.
According to police, the Rockdale resident was restrained in spending his alleged ill-gotten gains on more than $10,000 worth of Apple electronics, which included four phones.
He is charged with two counts of dishonestly obtaining a financial advantage for his own benefit and one count of attempting to line his own pockets.
But police claim he was involved in a further 143 fraud offences, including spending $6000 on tobacco products over just five days.
According to the court documents, more than $34,600 was splashed on Apple electronics, which bought 12 iPhones, four Apple watches, a MacBook and AirPods.
Nearly $4500 was allegedly invested in gift cards – including one for the online game Roblox – over just two months.
Some of the more unusual purchases included an air fryer, bunches of roses, Mecca beauty products, punnets of strawberries and a Square credit card payment terminal.
But cash remained king for the alleged fraudsters, with police claiming that more than $54,700 was withdrawn from various banks around Sydney over the course of 11 months.
Coluzzi was granted bail last month under strict conditions which included quasi-home detention and the release of a $400,000 surety to be forfeited if he fails to appear in court.
But his lawyer told Sutherland Local Court the funds haven’t yet been provided so her client is still in custody on remand.
She said she was hopeful the matter would be resolved within days.
Coluzzi’s matter was adjourned until September 25 when he will be required to enter pleas to the 145 charges against him.
The 56-year-old is alleged to have knowingly participated in a criminal group alongside Ashish Tamrakar, 35, and Ibrahim Abbas, 27, who both remain before the court.
The former faced 66 counts of fraud-related offences, including receiving stolen mail and participating in a criminal group, while the latter has been charged with 80 offences including fraud and attempted fraud.
