Public servant charged over alleged multi-million dollar fraud of NDIS

A 39-year-old Darwin woman has been charged with using her position as a public servant to defraud the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) of millions of dollars.Yesterday, a joint federal and territory police task force arrested Lee Point woman Genevine Ifunanya Ebelebe, alleging she used her position with the Department of Children and Families to refer "vulnerable members of the community" to an NDIS business she co-owned.In February, the task force charged the other owner of the business — 47-year-old Kingsley Ebelebe — with defrauding the NDIS of $5 million."Forensic analysis of the seized items allegedly linked the Darwin woman to the alleged offending," an Australian Federal Police (AFP) spokesperson said in a statement.Mr Ebelebe was a National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) employee, and is currently on bail.AFP said the pair's company claimed more than $28 million of NDIA funding, with about $18 million of the claims "identified as allegedly suspicious". Ms Ebelebe has been charged with five offences — two of which are Commonwealth charges — including one count of corruption, one count of dishonestly obtaining NDIS information and one count of dishonestly obtaining a gain from the NDIA.She will appear in Darwin Local Court today over the charges.NT Children and Families Department chief executive officer Brent Warren said the department had cooperated fully with the investigation."As soon as we were aware of the allegations, we acted immediately," he said."The former staff member has since resigned from the department."Mr Warren added that the department had reviewed the relevant referrals to "ensure appropriate processes were followed and children and families received the support they needed".