‘Cuckoo smurfing’ NSW pair jailed in WA

TWO people who admitted travelling from NSW to Western Australia to participate in a “cuckoo smurfing” money laundering scheme have been jailed.

Sarfraz Adil, 34, was sentenced to five years in prison, while Sanam Shehzadi, 28, was sentenced to three years behind bars after they were nabbed in February in possession of $724,922 that was the proceeds of crime.

WA District Court Judge Christopher Stevenson said the pair were “caught effectively red-handed”.

“I note that you did not bring the money with you to this state, but that it was provided to you on arrival for the express purpose of depositing in a number of different bank accounts in South Perth and the CBD and elsewhere,” he said.

Judge Stevenson said there was a degree of premeditation and sophistication in the crime, including using encrypted phones and pseudonyms for communication.

“The role that each of you played in the criminal venture was essential to its success and it was part of organised crime,” he said.

“Obviously, it went beyond borders and the organisational nature of the offending, as opposed to the commission of an individual crime by a citizen on its own, is a significant aggravating feature of the offending.”