A Mirvac project manager had tradies build a union boss’ Brisbane home and corruptly bill the work to a large shopping centre development, a court has heard.

October 28, 2019

A Mirvac executive had tradies build a union boss’s plush Brisbane home and bill the work to a large shopping centre development using false invoices, a court has heard.

Mathew Jason McAllum, 43, and ex-CFMEU Queensland senior-vice president David Arthur Hanna, 55, are accused of corruptly giving and receiving a secret commission for work allegedly done to complete the five-bedroom, three-bathroom Cornubia home.

Both men deny the charge, which the Brisbane District Court on Monday heard stems from $290,000 worth of building works between February and November 2013.

This included concreting, bricklaying, plastering, tiling and interior design after Hanna used family friend, Shane Dalby, to build the shell of the 480 square metre home, prosecutor Mark Whitbread said.

“(It was done by) authorising these trades to be paid by submitting false invoices for construction work that these trades were legitimately doing for Mirvac at a project known as Orion stage two at Springfield,” he said.

“The end result is that David Hanna received construction work for goods arranged by an employee of Mirvac, primarily Mr McAllum, for free.”

Mirvac is a large-scale property developer, with projects across Australia.

Mr Whitbread said McAllum, a former project manager on the shopping centre development, described the cost of building Hanna’s home as a cost variation to the original quote for Orion.

The court heard a second former Mirvac executive, Queensland commercial construction boss Adam Moore, was also involved in the scheme but has since died.

The trial continues on Tuesday.