New South Wales Crime Commission v Sribounheuang

The case before the court was an ex parte application by the New South Wales Crime Commission for a criminal assets restraining order. The applicant alleged that the respondent, Sribounheuang, had engaged in criminal activity and sought to prevent him from disposing of or transferring assets. The court was required to determine whether the threshold criteria for making such an order were met, considering the evidence presented by the Crime Commission. The respondent did not appear and was not represented, and the court proceeded with the application in his absence.

The court examined the evidence provided by the Crime Commission, including allegations of criminal conduct and the identification of assets that were potentially subject to the order. The legal issues centred on whether the commission had demonstrated a real possibility that the respondent had engaged in criminal conduct, that he possessed criminal property, and that there was a risk of the dissipation of those assets. The court had to consider the applicable legislation and case law, particularly the requirement that the commission establish a real possibility of the relevant facts, not merely a suspicion or possibility.

After considering the evidence, the court determined that the commission had made out a case sufficient to meet the threshold criteria for a criminal assets restraining order. The court found that there was a real possibility that the respondent had engaged in criminal activity, that he possessed criminal property, and that there was a risk of the dissipation of those assets. Consequently, the court made the order sought by the commission, restraining the respondent from disposing of or transferring specified assets. The court noted that the order was interim in nature and would be reviewed at a subsequent hearing where the respondent could be present and represented.