Seven Arrested Over Alleged Council Fraud in Shepparton as Police Probe Four-Year Scheme

Key points

• Seven men aged 36 to 55 were arrested in Shepparton, Victoria, on 17 June 2026 as part of a fraud investigation.
• Greater Shepparton City Council says it self-reported alleged employee fraud to Victoria Police after its own internal checks raised concerns.
• The alleged fraudulent conduct spans a council and a private business in Shepparton between 2022 and 2026.
• All seven men were interviewed and released, with police confirming the investigation is ongoing.

Seven men are at the centre of a police fraud investigation in regional Victoria, after Greater Shepparton City Council turned its own staff in.

Detectives from the Shepparton Crime Investigation Unit executed several search warrants across Shepparton on 17 June 2026 and arrested the seven men. Four were in their 50s, two in their 40s, and one was 36. All were interviewed and released while inquiries continue.

The alleged fraud is said to have run from 2022 to 2026 and involved not just the council but also a private Shepparton business. Police have not named the business or specified the amounts of money believed to be involved.

Crucially, the council found the problem itself.

Greater Shepparton chief executive Fiona Le Gassick confirmed that the council's own governance and financial checks flagged concerns before any outside tip-off. The council then chose to refer the matter to police. "Council identified concerns through its internal governance and financial processes and took the decision to refer the matter to police, consistent with our obligations and our commitment to accountability and transparency," Le Gassick said in a statement, first reported by ABC News Australia.

Why does this matter to people in Shepparton?

Greater Shepparton City Council is the local government body that manages public services, rates money, and infrastructure for tens of thousands of residents. Alleged employee fraud at a council means public funds, collected from ratepayers, may have been misused over several years. Residents are not being asked to do anything right now, but anyone with relevant information can contact Victoria Police or Crime Stoppers.

The council says it cannot comment further because the matter is now a police investigation. Le Gassick's statement emphasised the council "remains focused on supporting the Greater Shepparton community and on upholding the high standards of conduct our community rightly expects."

For organisations watching from outside Shepparton, the case is a reminder of what internal financial controls are for. The fraud allegedly ran for up to four years. The council's own systems eventually caught it, which is exactly the point of regular financial audits and segregation of duties (keeping different parts of a transaction handled by different staff, so no single person can approve and hide a fraudulent payment on their own).

Police say the investigation is ongoing. No charges have been formally laid at the time of writing.