Former National Gallery of Victoria employee charged with stealing $8 million in phone scheme

A former senior employee of the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne has been charged with stealing about $8 million from the institution through a sophisticated scheme that ran for six full years, from September 2019 to September 2025.

According to Victoria’s Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC), the suspect used an official gallery account to buy mobile phones worth about $8 million, which he then sold on the market for personal gain. Investigators allege he exploited his senior position to cover up the fraud and evade internal controls.

IBAC charged him with seven counts of theft and one count of misconduct in public office at the conclusion of the year-long investigation codenamed “Operation Sonder.” The accused’s identity has not yet been made public; he is expected to appear before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on October 20, 2026.

The gallery dismissed the employee in September 2025 after reporting the case to both Victoria Police and IBAC. In an official response, NGV says it has since introduced new measures and controls to strengthen its financial oversight systems.

The National Gallery of Victoria, founded in 1861, is Australia’s oldest and most visited public gallery, with a collection of nearly 80,000 artworks, as USA Art News reports (citing The Guardian, ABC Australia and Artforum).