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A Queensland man charged with serious money laundering offences is alleged to have laundered another $97,000 while on bail this year, a court has been told.
Anand Mahendra Rathod, 37, is accused of swindling up to $3 million from his victims – most of which were elderly people – as part of an alleged sophisticated cold call scam syndicate operating out of a jewellery store south of Brisbane.
On Friday, lawyers for the Sunnybank man applied for bail in the Supreme Court.
Lawyer Liam Dollar said his client could offer a surety of up to $20,000 in addition to curfew, reporting every day to police and wearing a GPS tracker.
Mr Dollar said Mr Rathod would also not operate any merchant facilities unless purchasing day-to-day expenses.
Police allege Mr Rathod was part of an organised cold call scam syndicate that tricked their mostly elderly victims into withdrawing money from their accounts.
Despite being granted bail earlier this year, he is alleged to have again laundered up to another $97,000 between May and June, this time using a different terminal.
“The general modus operandi of the scheme appears to be that funds were deposited into accounts opened by scammers,” Justice Frances Williams told the court.
“Once the moneys were in a compromised account, mules would take cards into the jewellery store and swipe cards associated with the mule accounts … and walk out without purchasing any jewellery.”
Mr Rathod is alleged to have used the merchant terminal at a jewellery store he was employed at to process funds obtained from the scam.
Crown prosecutor Rebecca Guppy-Coles said Mr Rathod was alleged to have continued to communicate with other members of the syndicate while on bail.
