Australia’s finance watchdog has charged Brendan Gunn, the brother of Olympian breaker Rachael Gunn, for allegedly dealing with money suspected to be proceeds of crime while operating a fiat-to-crypto conversion company.
In a March 5 statement, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said Gunn was charged with one count of dealing with money that could be reasonably suspected to be the proceeds of crime.
“It is alleged that Mr. Gunn dealt with two bank cheques, which contained the proceeds of four investment amounts totaling $181,000 made by three victim investors who deposited funds for conversion to cryptocurrency,” ASIC stated in its announcement.
Rachael Gunn, better known by her stage name “Raygun,” went viral for her breakdance performances during the 2024 Olympics — one of which saw her hop like a kangaroo.
She bombed out of the competition, losing all three of her battles at the games. However, her brother still complimented the performance.
In its statement, ASIC noted that Brendan Gunn was a director at Mormarkets, a company that accepted deposits for conversion to crypto.
“On behalf of Mormarkets, Mr. Gunn sought to open a series of bank accounts on an ongoing basis to receive and transfer deposits, despite bank accounts being repeatedly closed due to concerns about scams and Mr. Gunn being informed of these concerns,” ASIC claimed.
Gunn faced a local court on March 4 and is expected to return on April 29. If convicted, he faces three years behind bars, a $37,800 fine, or both.
ASIC Chair Joe Longo stated that the regulator “continues to prioritize scam prevention and detection activity” and will take action where required.
Information for Gunn’s lawyers was not immediately available.
This comes as regulators in the country have flagged plans to shift focus toward the crypto industry.
Australia’s Anti-Money Laundering regulator, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (AUSTRAC), recently took action against 13 remittance service providers and crypto exchanges in February, with over 50 others still being investigated regarding possible compliance issues.
AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas mentioned in December last year that the Anti-Money Laundering regulator was shifting its focus to the cryptocurrency industry in 2025 amid a crackdown on crypto ATM providers who might be flouting Anti-Money Laundering laws.
ASIC also released a consultation paper on proposed guidance for crypto in December, placing many digital assets under the category of financial products and requiring firms dealing in crypto to be licensed.