Corruption scandal rocks global leasing company

In an apparent case of ‘do as I say, not as I do’, Orix Australia’s chief executive is allegedly implicated in an incident being widely reported as one of Australia’s biggest corporate scandals. Orix Australia is part of the Japan-based Orix Group.

John Carter was arrested last week in relation to a number of payments police allege were made to a Coca-Cola Amatil (CCA) fleet manager in exchange for vehicle leasing contracts. He was charged with four counts of paying corrupt commissions and one count of money laundering. His arrest comes after a tip-off from within CCA.

Investigators from the Fraud and Cybercrime squad have been investigating the company’s operations since CCA reported suspicious activity relating to its vehicle fleet last year. An Orix senior manager and CCA’s fleet manager were also arrested in relation to the matter.

Police have alleged that four deposits totalling $504,000 were made between June 2014 and February 2015 into a bank account set up specifically for these transactions. They claim the payments were made by Carter’s senior manager, with his knowledge and under his direction. The CCA fleet manager, responsible for the $30-million-a-year fleet contract, is alleged to have then laundered the money.

It is suggested by police that the corruption scheme has been operating for a number of years and payments may in fact total in the millions. Police are continuing with investigations and urging anyone with any information to come forward.

Carter has been with Orix Australia since 1986 and was previously well regarded in business circles. According to News Corp publication The Australian, he contributed to a book about the parent company published late last year titled Good Risks: Discovering the Secrets to ORIX’s 50 Years of Success. In the publication, Carter is quoted as saying, “The biggest problem for business in my book is corruption” and “Corruption exists at many levels and, as a business, you need to work out how you deal with it.”

While these comments relate directly to questions regarding his appointment as the chairman of leasing operations in India and how he planned to manage that particular market, if the current allegations prove true, these words will surely cause some red faces in the upper ranks at Orix.

Carter and his alleged co-conspirators have all been released on conditional bail. They will all face court later this month or in early May.