Brendan Gunn, who formerly ran FX news site The Industry Spread, has pleaded guilty to handling AUS$180,000 ($125,000) in money from scams.
In a statement today, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) said Gunn accepted it was reasonable to suspect the funds were the proceeds of crime, derived from suspected international scams.
Gunn faces a maximum penalty in the Local Court of one year imprisonment, a fine of AUS$12,600 (US$8600), or both.
At the time of offending, Gunn was a director of Mormarkets Pty Ltd (Mormarkets), which accepted deposits from Australians for cryptocurrency and other supposed investment opportunities.
“While Mormarkets’ bank accounts were in operation, Mr Gunn was repeatedly notified of suspicious activity or reports of fraud, with the accounts progressively closed,” ASIC said.
After two Mormarkets bank accounts were closed, between March 2020 and May 2020, Gunn received two bank cheques which included proceeds of investment amounts totalling AUS$181,000.
Gunn admitted that he dealt with the bank cheques by sending them to an associate.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth)(CDPP), which is prosecuting the case following ASIC‘s investigation, has referred Gunn to the Downing Centre Local Court, which will provide a sentencing date on 10 February.
From 2016 Gunn ran trading sector news site The Industry Spread, which he sold in 2020, according to his LinkedIn profile, which also states he formerly held at several broking businesses, including GAIN Capital.
His sister, Rachael Louise Gunn, “Raygunn”, shot to media fame in 2024 for her breakdancing performance at the last Summer Olympics.
