Police Referrals

A properly prepared referral gives a fraud complaint its best chance of being investigated, and the wrongdoer its best chance of being charged. We prepare police referrals that investigators can act on, deliver them to the right agency and the right desk, and stay with the matter: liaising with investigators, responding to requests for further material, and supporting the investigation as it progresses.

Why most reports fail

Police receive fraud complaints as a bundle of grievance, suspicion and paperwork. Investigators must decide, quickly, whether there is an offence they can prove. If the complaint doesn’t show them one: clearly, with the evidence organised: it joins a long queue, or is assessed as a civil matter and closed.

No one can promise a prosecution: charging decisions belong to police and prosecutors alone. But a complaint that answers an investigator’s questions before they are asked is a different document from the one most victims send.

When to report

Usually after recovery, not before. Police investigate crime; they do not recover your money. If assets can still be secured, civil action (freezing orders, tracing) generally comes first, and we will tell you the right sequence at the outset. When accountability is the goal, or recovery is done, a properly prepared referral is how it gets taken seriously.

Who leads this work

Graham Ashton AM APM, Law Enforcement and Government Liaison, is the former Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police and a former Deputy Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police. Graham knows what a chargeable brief looks like because he spent a career reading them. He works with our lawyers to ensure referrals are complete, accurate and directed to the right place.