New South Wales Crime Commission v Weng

The New South Wales Crime Commission applied to the Supreme Court of New South Wales for a criminal assets restraining order against Weng, pursuant to the Criminal Assets Recovery Act 2006. The Commission alleged that Weng was involved in criminal activities, including money laundering, and sought to freeze his assets to prevent dissipation of funds that could be recovered under the Act. Weng contested the application, arguing that the Commission failed to establish the requisite grounds for the order.

The court was required to determine whether the Commission had made out the necessary threshold criteria to justify the granting of a criminal assets restraining order. This involved assessing whether there were reasonable grounds to believe that the property of the respondent was derived from or represented criminal conduct, and whether it was necessary to prevent the dissipation of those assets.

The court considered the evidence presented and found that the Commission had established a prima facie case that Weng's assets were likely derived from criminal activity. The court was satisfied that the Commission had demonstrated that there were reasonable grounds to believe that the assets were derived from criminal conduct and that there was a real risk of dissipation of those assets if the order was not made. Accordingly, the court granted the application and made the restraining order.

The court ordered that Weng's assets, as specified in the order, be restrained and managed by the Commission. The order also provided for the freezing of bank accounts, the appointment of a receiver, and the imposition of restrictions on the disposal of assets. The court further directed that Weng be given notice of the order and afforded an opportunity to make representations regarding the making of the order.