AFP raids PwC offices as tax leaks investigation further unfolds
The Australian Federal Police raided PwC Sydney offices on Monday in the most recent development in the tax leaks scandal.
On Monday morning, the Australian Federal Police entered Sydney PwC offices to further investigate the firm’s confidentiality breaches to clients and staff members.
The AFP entered the Barangaroo offices as part of an arranged visit in search of secret documents related to the previous tax scandal and were set to be on site for several days.
PwC chief executive Kevin Burrowes told staff on Monday morning that they should expect AFP presence in the firm headquarters via email, as reported by The Guardian.
In the email, Burrowes said, “This step is an expected development in relation to an investigation the AFP commenced in 2023 into the historical tax matter and individuals who have left our firm".
“We have been working with the AFP to facilitate its attendance and will continue to cooperate with its investigation.”
Burrowes said in the email for staff to “carry on as usual and remain focused on the important work we’re delivering with our clients and in the community.”
The investigation was dubbed Operation Alesia and has been in action since May last year.
Operation Alesia was labelled as a “sensitive and priority investigation” and had extended overseas, according to the AFP.
As previously reported by Accountants Daily, the original tax scandal emerged from former PwC partner Peter Collins sharing confidential information about tax law changes with other partners. Collins was then later deregistered by the Tax Practitioners Board.
Collins’ registration as a tax agent was cancelled for two years before he was banned from providing financial services for eight years by ASIC.
Collins was found to have leaked confidential tax plans to clients during his former role as an adviser to Treasury and the Australian Board of Taxation.
According to The Australian Financial Review, a person familiar with the AFP investigation said officers were still focused on four PwC partners.
“The visit comes after officers visited former PwC partner Peter Collins at his residence in late August, according to two people briefed on the investigation,” the Financial Review said.
“Mr Collins shared with other partners confidential details about changes to federal tax rules designed to combat multinational tax avoidance. Those partners used that information to win new clients and develop new structures that sidestepped the laws the firm was helping to design.”
Accountants Daily has reached out to PwC for further comment.
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