Director of Public Prosecutions v Duong
[2025] VCC 1432
•30 September 2025
| IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA AT MELBOURNE CRIMINAL DIVISION | Revised Not Restricted Suitable for Publication |
CR-25-00988
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS |
| v |
| MINH-CHAU DUONG |
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JUDGE: | HIS HONOUR JUDGE DOYLE | |
WHERE HELD: | Melbourne | |
DATE OF HEARING: | 9 and 16 September 2025 | |
DATE OF SENTENCE: | 30 September 2025 | |
CASE MAY BE CITED AS: | DPP v Duong | |
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION: | [2025] VCC 1432 | |
REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:CRIMINAL LAW – Sentence
Catchwords: Guilty plea - Obtain property by deception - Obtain financial advantage by deception - Possess drug of dependence - Possess explosive substance - Handle stolen goods - Drive while disqualified - Provide false information - Prohibited person possess imitation firearm
Legislation Cited: Crimes Act1958; Sentencing Act1991; Control of Weapons Act1990;
Cases Cited:Kepkey v The Queen [2021] VSCA 202; Pun v The Queen [2017] VSCA 219; Bugmy v The Queen [2013] HCA 37; 249 CLR 571
Sentence: Total effective sentence of seven years and four months with a minimum non-parole period of five years and four months.
Section 6AAA: Nine years and six months with a minimum non-parole period of seven years and six months.
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APPEARANCES: | Counsel | Solicitors |
| For the Director of Public Prosecutions | Ms K. Do | Office of Public Prosecutions |
| For the Accused | Ms J. Swiney | Giorgianni & Liang Lawyers |
HIS HONOUR:
1Minh-Chau Duong, you have plead guilty to obtain property by deception, seven charges of obtaining financial advantage by deception, possessing a drug of dependence, possessing an explosive substance, handle stolen goods, prohibited possession of an imitation firearm under the Control of Weapons Act, and then the related summary offences of three driving whilst disqualified offences and providing false information in respect of driving.
2The maximum penalties are as follows: obtaining property by deception, 10 years; obtaining financial advantage, 10 years; possessing drug of dependence, five years; possess explosive substance for unlawful object, five years; handling stolen goods, 15 years; possess imitation firearm, 10 years, driving whilst disqualified, two years; and providing false information, 60 penalty units.
3Charges 1,4 and 8 are continuing criminal enterprise (CCE) offences because either the quantum of the offence exceeds $50,000 or one of the transactions included in the rolled-up charge is greater than $50,000. The maximum penalty for those charges is double the statutory maximum of 10 years, so 20 years' imprisonment.
4The victim in this matter is Juan Dong. She lived in Balwyn until 2015 and still owns a property there where her personal belongings remain. She now lives in China and has done so for some time.
5Unknown to her, you came into possession of her personal information, bank cards and other documents which allowed you to access her financial accounts. Over about six months in 2024, you spent, withdrew and transferred the victim's money, superannuation and shares.
6The total amount taken from the victim is $2,562,938.83.
7Your offending came to light when a jewellery store owner contacted police concerned about potentially fraudulent transactions in which you purchased approximately $80,000 worth of jewellery in the span of two weeks. Police commenced an investigation which uncovered the fraud.
Fraudulent access to accounts
8Purporting to be the victim and using her personal information, you had gained access to her shares, superannuation, VicRoads account and NAB account where you changed identifiers to ones linked to you.
9You digitally altered her driver's licence so it would show your face. You opened various accounts purporting to be the accounts belonging to the victim, her daughter and others, including:
(a)A Suncorp bank account in her name but with your address.
(b)Suncorp credit card in her name but sent to you.
(c)Various email accounts, and an
(d)Optus phone service in the victim's name.
Bank transfers and purchases.
10You used the victim's debit card, linked to her bank account, to make purchases and access funds. Some of the bank transfers were described by you as 'gifts', 'car', 'lovefrommum', and 'wedding'.
11You used her NAB debit card 108 times between 13 May and 30 June 2024 to purchase various goods valued at $101,892.96. That is the basis of Charge 2.
12Between 17 May and 8 July 2024, you used the NAB debit card 32 times to withdraw $51,012 in cash. That is the basis of Charge 3.
13Between 20 May and 30 June, you transferred $2,136,997 from the victim to your bank account. That is the basis of Charge 4.
14Between 20 May and 4 July, you transferred $22,650 from the victim to a Suncorp bank account in her name but opened and controlled by you. That is the basis of Charge 5.
15Between 20 May and 4 July, you transferred $2,800 from the victim to an UPbank account controlled by you. That is the basis of Charge 6.
16On 8 July you transferred $51 from the victim to your bank account. That is the basis of Charge 7. This brought her bank account balance to zero. The victim has been reimbursed by NAB for the entirety of the funds taken.
17Your learner driver's licence was disqualified on 12 May 2016 and at the time of this offending you were disqualified from obtaining a licence. You were captured on CCTV footage driving on 23 June, 27 June and 3 July. On each occasion you were driving a different Mercedes motor vehicle. These offences are covered by Summary Charges 8,9 and 12 of driving whilst disqualified.
Superannuation
18Charge 1 relates to you accessing the victim's SuperCare account worth $96,415.57 and transferring that amount to an account with Aware Super that you had opened and which you controlled. You then, unsuccessfully, tried to transfer these funds into an Australian Super account. The funds were returned to the victim.
Share sale
19Charge 8 relates to you selling the victim's shares in Dexus Wholesale Australian Property Fund in two transactions totalling $150,989.98. These proceeds were transferred into a bank account controlled by you. A hold was placed on these funds in the amount of $84,962 which was returned to the victim but $66,027.32 could not be covered.
Use of funds
20During the period, you accessed the victim's account and purchased six luxury cars worth approximately $400,000, five Rolex watches worth $126,620.28, designer clothing worth approximately $100,000.30, electronics, white goods and furniture worth $30,000.31, and you had dentistry work performed for the amount of $34,000.32.
21You also transferred approximately $700,000 from the victim's account in accounts belonging to you, your friends and family.
22You gambled $616,689.50 at the TAB between April and September 2024. You also gambled at Crown Casino and received gifts and benefits for reaching membership status based on the amount you spent.
Fines (Summary Charge 15 – provide false information)
23You made false nominations in relation to four infringement notices, entering your phone number and an email address used by you but naming the individual that had left Australia in 2023. That is the basis of Summary Charge 15.
Arrest
24You were arrested at your residence on 10 October 2024, and police located the following items:
(a) Items purchased by you using the victim's funds.
(b) 600 mls of 1,4 butanediol in two bottles found in a wardrobe in the glove box of your car. (Rolled-up Charge 9)
(c) A small quantity of methylamphetamine. (Rolled-up Charge 9)
(d) A small quantity of heroin. (Rolled-up Charge 9)
(e) A Greatwall Star Blaster Firework. That is the basis of Charge 10.
(f) Documents and cards belonging to the victim and her daughter and 14 miscellaneous identity and reward cards in the names of other persons. That is the basis of Charge 11.
(g) Black Gel Blaster imitation firearm. You were a prohibited person at the time, having served a term of imprisonment within five years of the date of police finding that item. That is the basis of Charge 12.
Interview
25You made admissions to police, but you did not express remorse for the offending; nor did you express remorse to the psychologist, Ms Fleming, who assessed you. You were remanded in custody at that time.
Guilty Plea
26You pleaded guilty at a committal mention on 3 June 2025. I treat that as the earliest opportunity.
27Your plea has spared the court, the prosecution and the police, the use of the resources required for a contested trial. You have also spared the witnesses, particularly the victim, the experience of having to give evidence in this matter. The victim lives in China so it may well have been difficult to arrange for her to give evidence.
28I accept your plea indicates a willingness to facilitate the course of justice, but there is little evidence of genuine remorse for this offending outside of the guilty plea.
29Nonetheless, your plea does have significant utilitarian value, and it is a significant mitigating factor in this matter. In fact, it is the most significant mitigating factor.
Gravity
30This was very serious high level dishonesty offending. The maximum penalties, including the increased maximums for the continuing criminal enterprise offences, reflect the seriousness of the offences.
31The offending was planned, protracted and involved sophistication. You digitally altered the licence of the victim, and you took other steps to steal her identity and then loot her accounts over the period of the offending. This really was a case of identity theft. Your offending did not come to the attention of the victim because she is in China. It only ended because of the suspicions of the jeweller who notified police.
32The gravity of the offending is underpinned by the very large amount of money/ financial advantage you obtained, over $2.5m. The offending occurred over months and involved literally hundreds of separate criminal acts.
33Your motivation was greed and high living as evidenced by your spending and gambling of the proceeds of the offences. Some of the charges are rolled up, incorporating the numerous criminal acts it took to obtain these amounts of money.
34The circumstances in which you came to be in possession of the victim's private documents and personal information are opaque, but you are a criminal, so you have the type of associates who commit burglaries. The handle stolen goods charge relating to the victim’s property and other stolen items is consistent with the explanation given by your counsel, Ms Swiney, that you obtained the documents and information because of a burglary which had taken place some time earlier, and you were the beneficiary of the items stolen.
35Whilst quite of lot of the property was recovered, very substantial amounts were not, and the losses the bank had to cover were very large.
36The drug offences, the drive whilst disqualified offences, the provision of false information are typical of your disregard of the law.
37The possessions of the fireworks offence is an offence against s317(4) of the Crimes Act which makes it an offence to possess an explosive substance for an unlawful object. The unlawful object here is that you had the fireworks in your possession other than in accordance with the law without a permit. I accept that regulation of fireworks exists to prevent injury, and there is always a possibility of injury if those fireworks had been used by you. Nonetheless, it seems to me that offence falls well towards the lower end of the spectrum.
38I have looked at the photographs in the depositions of the gel blaster, the imitation firearm, and whilst I accept it fits the definition of an imitation firearm, because it could reasonably be mistaken for an operable firearm; on a closer examination of the photos it looks like a plastic toy to me, which is what it is. It is capable of firing gel, as I understand it. But I do not infer a criminal purpose for its presence in your home, and the prosecution did not urge that on me. That, too, falls towards the lower end of the spectrum for that type of offence which carries a substantial maximum of 10 years' imprisonment.
39Having regard to all these matters, I assess your moral culpability for this offending as high.
Current Sentencing Practices
40I was referred to two comparative cases as indicators of current sentencing practices. Those cases were Kepkey v The Queen[1], which involved an unsuccessful sentence appeal against a term of imprisonment for five years with a non-parole period of three years, following a plea to six charges including three of obtaining property by deception and three of obtaining financial advantage by deception where a quantum of offending was over $1m. The offender in that case had stolen from his elderly father by using his personal information to change an online banking profile, thereby allowing him to transfer funds to his own bank account. The offender in that case, had no prior convictions and was assessed as having good prospects of rehabilitation.
[1][2021] VSCA 202.
41I was also referred to the case of Pun v The Queen[2], which involved a much less significant amount of money and was perhaps less useful as a comparative case.
[2][2017] VSCA 219.
42There are also very many comparative cases in the Sentencing Manual Case Summaries; however, current sentencing practices are a guide but not a controlling factor in the imposition of the sentence, and no two cases are ever the same. I have had regard to those cases, but they are just one factor that I must consider in deciding the appropriate sentence.
Personal circumstance
43Turning then to your personal circumstances. You are 39 years old, born on in October 1985. Your background is Vietnamese, but you were born in Melbourne. Your background is set out in a psychological report of Ms Laura Fleming which was tendered as an exhibit on the plea.
44You are now 39 years old. You were born in Collingwood and raised in Sunshine. You lived with your parents and an older brother and your sister until you were 13 years old. Your parents ran a clothing business.
45Your parents separated and had to sell their house due to your father's gambling debts. You describe arguments between your parents over your father's gambling, and there was physical violence from your father to your mother. You were also exposed to physical discipline.
46After your parents had to sell the family home, you then lived in rented accommodation with your mother and siblings. You avoided spending much time with your father. Your mother struggled financially.
47Your mother and sister are supportive of you, and you have regular contact with them. However, your brother, who obtained a university degree and who lives with your mother, disapproves of your drug use and you have little contact with him.
48You went to two different secondary schools due to your family relocating. You were educated until Year 11, which you attempted on three occasions. You had behavioural difficulties at secondary school, and you were often in trouble due to drug use and fighting.
49You have had some work as a labourer, but mostly your lifestyle has been funded through criminal activities. However, you enjoyed a period of stable employment starting in 2019 when you worked at a pet food factory, eventually becoming a warehouse manager. You were married in that period and for a while you had a stable life, but your marriage ended in 2022. You have had some recent employment as a forklift driver.
50You have had three significant relationships. You are currently in a relationship with Ms Tanya Sikberg who provided a letter of support and who attended court for the plea hearing in this matter and is online listening to the sentencing remarks. You plan to get married when you are released from custody. You and Ms Sikberg have a child who will soon turn three years old. You are motivated to become a father and curb your long-term substance abuse and gambling problems.
51You have abused drugs for a long time. You first started using heroin when you were 15 years old. You have also been a regular user of methylamphetamine since you were 18 years old. In the three months before you went into custody for these matters, you were using a lot of methamphetamines. You have also used GHB since your mid-20s. Obviously, you had butanediol in your possession at the time of these offences.
52You have had periods of enforced abstinence from drugs when you have been in custody, and you participated in drug treatment on multiple occasions, but without meaningful success. You are currently prescribed buprenorphine via injection as an opioid replacement.
53You have had gambling problems since your mid-teens when you started playing the pokies.
54Ms Fleming, the psychologist who assessed you, diagnosed you as having a substance use disorder, a gambling disorder and as exhibiting anti-social personality traits. She says you need psychological intervention, substance abuse and gambling counselling and that you need to maintain abstinence from drugs. She says any custodial sentence should incorporate a period of intensive support and supervision after your release. In this case, that will be reflected in a non-parole period.
55Based on the difficulties of your upbringing, your counsel Ms Swiney submitted that the Bugmy[3] principles have general application in assessing your moral culpability for the offending, in that your moral culpability should be assessed as lower than an offender without the instability of your childhood years, all other things being equal. I accept you suffered some disadvantages growing up which to an extent explain your ongoing problems with drugs, gambling and offending and lead to a modest reduction in the assessment of your moral culpability, which remains substantial for this very serious dishonesty offending.
[3]Bugmy v The Queen [2013] HCA 37; 249 CLR 571
Prior convictions
56You have a lengthy and relevant criminal history.
57Your prior convictions start in 2004, when you were 19 years old. You have prior convictions for trafficking drugs, dishonesty offences, and in September 2009 at the County Court in Melbourne, you were convicted of an armed robbery and a common law assault, for which you were sentenced to four years' imprisonment with a minimum of two years. You have been sentenced to imprisonment on multiple occasions. You have also been placed on community correction orders. Your prior convictions indicate you are a recidivist offender.
58There is a gap in your prior convictions between 2016 and 2022, which is consistent with your counsel's submissions about the stability of your life in that time, which fell apart in 2022 when your marriage or relationship broke down.
59On 24 February 2023, you were sentenced to six months' imprisonment and a community correction order for a period of 18 months. On my assessment, there must have been overlap between that community correction order and the offending in this case. You were ultimately dealt with for contravening that order in August 2024. It is an aggravating feature that you were on a community correction order at the time of the offending.
60Nothing the courts have done so far has deterred you from continuing to offend. This offending is an escalation in seriousness from the offences you have committed in the past, possibly excepting the armed robbery in 2009.
61Your prior convictions are relevant to the need for specific deterrence, community protection and to the assessment of your moral culpability and prospects of rehabilitation. But I emphasise, you are not to be sentenced again for your prior convictions.
Time in prison
62You have been a vulnerable prisoner whilst you have been on remand. You were the victim of an assault, and you were placed in a management unit as a result. Apparently other prisoners are aware of the amount of money involved in these offences and have targeted you believing you must still have some of the proceeds, which is not an unreasonable view for them to hold.
Counselling
63In prison you have self-referred for assistance with your gambling issues. This was confirmed by email. You will undergo gambling counselling in custody and therapeutic care. You will also be able to get counselling when released through the organisation providing that counselling. You counsel submitted it will take some time for you to assess how to deal with your gambling.
Prospects of rehabilitation
64The key to your rehabilitation will obviously be addressing your drug and gambling problems, and I accept you are attempting to do that in the prison. However, having regard to the gravity of these offences and your criminal history, I can only take a guarded view at best of your prospects of rehabilitation.
Sentencing principles
65General deterrence, that is the need to deter people tempted to engage in dishonesty offending of this magnitude, must be given significant weight in this sentencing exercise. Such people must understand that detection and conviction will result in significant punishment. Additionally, through my sentence, I must try and bring home to you again that if you continue to offend at this level significant periods of imprisonment will follow. In your case, having regard to your recidivism and because the offending represents an escalation in your criminality, community protection is also important. On behalf of the community, my sentence must demonstrate denunciation of your offending. However, there is of course hope for your rehabilitation, and as best I can, I must attempt to facilitate your reintegration into the community through the non-parole period that I fix in this matter.
Totality
66The totality principle is important in this case. The totality principle provides or requires that the total effective sentence must be just and proportionate to the overall criminality of your offending. To achieve that, substantial concurrency between the charges must be imposed.
Non-parole period
67The non-parole period is the minimum period justice requires you to serve before becoming eligible for parole. It must be consistent though with the objective gravity of the offending but is designed to mitigate punishment in favour of rehabilitation. I have allowed for what I regard as an appropriate non-parole period in this matter.
Sentence
68Turning then to my sentence in this case.
69In relation to Charge 1 of obtaining financial advantage by deception, which relates to the theft from the Super account of $96,000, and which is a continuing criminal enterprise offence which will be noted in the records of the court, you are convicted and sentenced to 20 months' imprisonment.
70In relation to Charge 2, obtaining financial advantage by deception relating to the use of the credit card, rolled-up, to the value of approximately $101,000, 20 months' imprisonment.
71In relation to Charge 3, which related to the credit card, obtaining property by deception - 32 occasions of using the credit card, rolled-up - you are convicted and sentenced to 14 months' imprisonment.
72In relation to Charge 4 of obtaining financial advantage by deception, which related to the transfer of $2m, you are convicted and sentenced to five years and nine months' imprisonment, which is a total of 69 months.
73In relation to Charge 5, obtaining financial advantage by deception - a transfer of 22,000 from the victim's Suncorp account to yours - you are convicted and sentenced to 10 months' imprisonment.
74In relation to Charge 6 - transfer of $2,800 to your account, obtaining financial advantage by deception, you are convicted and sentenced to four months' imprisonment.
75In relation to Charge 7, obtaining financial advantage by deception, which related to just $51.00, you are convicted and sentenced to one month.
76In relation to Charge 8, obtaining financial advantage by deception, which related to selling the shares from the victim's property fund, two transactions totalling approximately $150,000, you are convicted and sentenced to two years and two months' imprisonment, or 26 months. That also is a continuing criminal enterprise offence, as is Charge 4.
77Charge 9, possess drug of dependence, you are convicted and sentenced to two months' imprisonment.
78Charge 10, possessing the explosive substance - this is the Greatwall fire blaster - for an unlawful object, one month.
79Charge 11, handling stolen goods relating to the victim's and her daughter's property and other property, you are convicted and sentenced to 12 months.
80Charge 12, possessing the imitation firearm, the gel blaster, you are convicted and sentenced to three months.
81Summary Charge 8, drive whilst disqualified, convicted and sentenced to two months.
82Summary Charge 9, drive whilst disqualified, convicted and sentenced to two months.
83Summary Charge 12, drive whilst disqualified, convicted and sentenced to two months.
84Summary Charge 15, convicted and fined $800.
85I order the following periods of cumulation: on the base sentence, which is Charge 4, and on each other, Charge 1, three months; Charge 2, three months; Charge 3, two months; Charge 5, one month; Charge 6, one month; Charge 7, six months; Charge 11, two months; and on the last driving whilst disqualified, Summary Charge 12, one month.
86Just bear with me for a moment. Can you check the maths. That should make seven years and four months as a total effective sentence in this matter, 88 months. Can you just check that. It's 69 months for this charge and I have added the cumulation as 19. Do you agree.
87MS DO: Your Honour, I just wanted to raise, you said for the cumulation on Charge 7 is six months. Is that correct.
88HIS HONOUR: No, no, that was on Charge 8.
89MS DO: Apologies, Your Honour.
90HIS HONOUR: It was probably me. It was Charge 8. The $51 non-cumulation, so the six months' cumulation is on Charge 8. Just check that's right. I believe it's correct, seven years and four months.
91I fix a minimum non-parole period of five years and four months.
Pre-sentence detention
92I allow 355 days of pre-sentence detention under s18 of the Sentencing Act to be deducted administratively from the sentence that I have imposed.
Section 6AAA
93But for your plea of guilty, I would have imposed a sentence of nine years and six months with a minimum non-parole period of seven years and six months. That is the 6AAA sentence in this matter.
94There are various ancillary order in this matter, are there not, Ms Do.
95MS DO: That's correct, Your Honour.
96HIS HONOUR: No objection to any of those forfeiture orders.
97MS SWINEY: No, Your Honour.
98HIS HONOUR: I will make those orders as well. Is there anything else I need to do.
99MS DO: No, Your Honour.
100HIS HONOUR: Thank you very much. Thanks, Ms Swiney, we'll turn off the link.
101MS SWINEY: Thank you, Your Honour.
102HIS HONOUR: You're excused. There's another matter pending so I'll just see if those people are outside. Thanks Ms Do.
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