Ex-Aussie CIO faces further fraud charges

Former Woolworths CIO's case is adjourned for third time

A former CIO at Woolworths Australia has had further charges laid against him, following his original arrest in February for allegedly receiving almost A$4 million (NZ$4.5 million) in kickbacks during the awarding of multi-million dollar IT contracts in the 1990s.

According to The Australian, David Wills, who was CIO at the supermarket chain during the 1990s, allegedly received more than A$3.7 million in bribes while managing an A$130 million scanning system project involving unnamed companies from the US and Israel.

Wills was arrested in February and charged with nine counts of fraud. He was granted bail and set for an appearance in Sydney’s Parramatta Local Court on March 6, but the case was adjourned to early June.

It has now been adjourned a third time, following the laying of fresh charges against Wills, including cheating or defrauding as a director, and conspiracy to cheat or defraud.

According to The Australian, the new charges relate to Wills allegedly making transactions of over A$300,000 using funds that originated from an offence.

The A$130 million project took place in the late 1990s and involved overhauling the supermarket chain’s in-store systems in an attempt to become Y2K-compliant.

Join the newsletter!

Or

Sign up to gain exclusive access to email subscriptions, event invitations, competitions, giveaways, and much more.

Membership is free, and your security and privacy remain protected. View our privacy policy before signing up.

Error: Please check your email address.

Tags fraudwoolworthswills

Show Comments
[]