Troubled youths funds gambled away at Crown Casino

African youth justice leader Abselom Nega, has, over the years, won millions of dollars in government contracts to provide programs for youths lodged in Victoria’s criminal justice system.

However, it is now alleged that Mr Nega gambled these taxpayer dollars away at Crown Casino. 

54-year-old Mr Nega is accused of obtaining $4.2 million, that he claimed was to be used towards state government funded programs for troubled youths and refugees. 

However, after obtaining court transcripts, the Herald Sun reports that at the height of Mr Nega’s gambling addiction in 2012, he spent 278 days at Crown and lost $712, 000.

Investigators from Victoria Police’s Fraud and Extortion Squad allege that between 2005-2016, while Mr Nega was CEO of iEmpower, he lost $2.4 million at Crown casino. It is also alleged that he fabricated financial records to hide his habit.

Detective Senior Constable Sasha Jasic told the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court, “A large proportion of the funding amounts provided for the programs were used to fund gambling activities … virtually entire funding payments were spent on gambling within several days of receipt.”

Police allege that Mr Nega had a relationship with bookkeeper Freya Wang, and would secretly meet her at the Radisson Hotel three times a week to falsify the company’s financial records.

The court was told by Senior Constable Jasic, that Mr Nega supplied the Department of Justice false reports claiming his expenditure for the youth program cost him more than the funding he was awarded.

“He reported some programs cost him $100,000 to $200,000 but police financial analysis found they would have cost between $20,000 to $30,000 as most programs were contributed to by voluntary persons such as the police force,” he said.

The investigation spanned two years during which hours of telephone conversations in Arabic were intercepted by the fraud squad.

During these intercepted calls it came to light that Mr Nega allegedly conspired with his son, Daniel Nega, to break the leg of Richard Ryan, operations manager at iEmpower, after he raised certain concerns with the company. 

Mr Nega was arrested but gave no comment when interviewed.

Mr Nega bought a home in Ethiopia during this time and intercepted phone calls indicated that he and his wife declared a “desire to escape everything” following his arrest.

It is also alleged that me Nega’s financial records had been stolen from his car just days after his accountant’s practice has been raided by police in March 2018. 

All allegations against Mr Nega were heard in March during a successful bail application. 

Detectives said there was an extreme risk of  Mr Nega interfering with witnesses and expressed their concerns of him being a flight risk. He received bail under the conditions that he surrenders his passport, does not leave Victoria and has no contact with witnesses.

He will reappear in court on September 23.