Aussie Skips has joined Bingo Industries in pleading guilty to criminal cartel offences that could hit the companies with fines of $10 million or more.
On Monday, Aussie Skips and executive director Emmanuel Roussakis pleaded guilty in the Federal Court in a criminal case launched against both last December.
This follows a guilty plea by Bingo in August last year and another guilty plea by ex-Bingo managing director and chief executive Daniel Tartak in October over the same cartel.
Bingo and Aussie Skips are accused of agreeing to fix prices for the supply of bins for building and demolition waste in Sydney in mid-2019.
A two-day sentence hearing for Aussie Skips and Roussakis has been scheduled in the Federal Court from May 22. Bingo and Tartak will be sentenced over two days from March 9.
A third company alleged to have been part of the cartel, Skips Bin Services, has not been charged.
An investigation by the consumer watchdog uncovered the alleged price fixing which affected what Sydney customers paid for waste processing services for building and demolition.
The matter was then referred to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions which laid charges.
“Cartels are illegal because they can cause serious economic damage to the economy. This is also the reason why the ACCC takes investigations into cartel conduct seriously and will continue to refer matters to the CDPP when appropriate,” ACCC deputy chair Mick Keogh said on Monday.
In investigating cartels, the ACCC can choose to provide immunity to current or past cartel members that come forward and co-operate with authorities.
For corporations, the maximum fine available for cartel breaches is at least $10 million. Individuals convicted face potential maximum jail time of 10 years and fines of up to $440,000.
Source: AAP
