Sydney fortune-teller Anya Phan and daughter Thi Ta charged in $70M fraud scam targeting Vietnamese-Australians with fake predictions. Police seize luxury assets in major syndicate bust.
Mythical Billionaires, Real-Life Devastation: Fortune Teller's $70M Loan Scam Rocks Migrant Trust:
In a dramatic raid on a luxury mansion in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, Australian police have arrested a self-proclaimed fortune teller and her daughter, accusing them of orchestrating a sophisticated $70 million fraud scheme that preyed on vulnerable members of the Vietnamese-Australian community. Anya Phan, 53, allegedly used her role as a feng shui master and psychic to convince clients to take out loans under false promises of future wealth, pocketing hefty cuts while funneling funds into a broader money-laundering operation. This case exposes deep vulnerabilities in community-based trust networks and highlights one of Australia’s largest alleged financial crime syndicates, with total losses potentially exceeding $250 million across major banks.
As investigations reveal a web of ghost cars, overvalued properties, and corrupt insiders, the arrests underscore the human cost: victims left in financial ruin, facing debts they believed would be erased by mythical billionaires. With assets worth $75 million now frozen, this scandal could reshape how authorities tackle organized fraud in migrant communities.
From Stolen Identities to VIP Casino Chips: The Step-by-Step Collapse of a $250M Fraud Ring:
The operation came to light through Strike Force Myddleton, a New South Wales Police investigation launched in January 2024 after detecting irregularities in automotive financing. Initially focused on a syndicate using stolen personal information to secure loans for nonexistent “ghost cars”-luxury vehicles that never materialized-the probe quickly expanded. By mid-2025, detectives uncovered large-scale fraud involving personal, business, and home loans against multiple financial institutions, with estimated losses ballooning to over $250 million.
In July 2025, the alleged original ringleader, Bing Li, was arrested in his $18 million Barangaroo penthouse, giving the group its “Penthouse Syndicate” moniker. Police allege Phan stepped in as leader, leveraging her community influence to recruit “mules.” On November 12, 2025, around 6 a.m., heavily armed officers raided Phan’s $13.75 million Dover Heights duplex. Phan and Ta were arrested and taken to Surry Hills Police Station.
Seized during the raid: financial documents, mobile phones, electronics, luxury handbags, a 40-gram gold bar valued at $10,000, and $6,600 in casino chips. The NSW Crime Commission froze an additional $15 million in assets, including the Dover Heights property and a $5.3 million Rose Bay unit allegedly purchased by Ta as part of the scheme.
Prosecutors allege Phan convinced clients-often in financial hardship-to take out loans totaling $1.5 million each, promising a billionaire would soon enter their lives to resolve debts. Victims, acting as mules, received portions of the funds, while Phan kept at least $150,000 per transaction. The money was laundered through Sydney casinos, with Phan documented as a VIP high roller who cycled over $520,000 in two months, including $45,000 in one three-hour session.
Seventeen others have been charged in related cases, with the syndicate accused of bribing bank staff-like NAB employee Timotius Donny Sungkar, who allegedly took $17,000 in bribes for $10 million in fraudulent approvals-and overvaluing properties to extract profits.
Vibrant Community, Hidden Risks: Language Barriers, Cultural Factors, and the Cost of Sophisticated Fraud:
Sydney’s Vietnamese-Australian community, numbering over 100,000, has long been a vibrant part of the city’s multicultural fabric, contributing significantly to business and culture. However, cultural trust in spiritual advisors like fortune tellers can create vulnerabilities, as seen in past scams targeting migrant groups. Phan, who arrived in Australia in 2001 and became a citizen shortly after, had no formal employment history and received Disability Support Pension for over 20 years. Despite this, she lived extravagantly, with monthly mortgage repayments of $56,000 on her Dover Heights home.
The Penthouse Syndicate’s tactics echo broader trends in organized financial crime in Australia, where syndicates exploit stolen identities and insider corruption. A 2024 Australian Federal Police report noted a rise in such schemes, with migrant communities disproportionately affected due to language barriers and cultural factors. The NAB alone reportedly lost over $150 million, with properties artificially inflated in Sydney’s eastern suburbs market.
Described by police as one of the most sophisticated in history, it involved cross-institutional fraud, casino laundering, and community exploitation. It follows similar probes, like the 2023 “Hermes” operation dismantling a $100 million money-laundering ring.