The case of two North West Queensland men charged after they allegedly accessed over $360,000 through fraudulently claiming disaster assistance funding has been deferred to April.
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Pastoral property man Patrick Denis Donovan, 71 and Mount Isa man David Samuel Ivan Rutherfurd, 46 appeared in Mount Isa Magistrates Court on Monday of fraud charges.
No plea was entered and their cases were deferred to a committal mention on April 11 with the brief was expected to be tendered to the court on March 21.
Detectives from the Cloncurry Major and Organised Crime Squad Rural charged the two men with fraud offences after they allegedly accessed over $360,000 through fraudulently claiming disaster assistance funding.
In August 2020 MOCS Rural detectives commenced an investigation after receiving information relating to claims submitted to the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority for 2019 North and Far North Queensland Monsoon Trough grant schemes.
Following a protracted investigation investigators from the Cloncurry, Charters Towers and Longreach MOCS Rural with the assistance of Cloncurry and Mount Isa officers and the Electronic Evidence Unit executed five search warrants at a pastoral property near Cloncurry in December and several business addresses in Mount Isa where documentation and electronic evidence was seized.
Mr Donovan is charged with one case of fraud - dishonestly gain benefit/advantage value of at least $100,000
Mr Rutherfurd is charged with two counts of fraud - dishonest application of property of another, two cases of fraud - dishonestly gain benefit/advantage value of at least $100,000, one case of fraud - dishonestly gain benefit/advantage value of over $3000 but less than $100,000, one case of receiving tainted property and one case of stealing.
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