Gangs raid building sites: report

The boss of a Sydney construction firm has vanished owing at least $5 million in unpaid bills, as bikie gangs turn his building sites upside down to recover the money.

Vince Santoro, of Elite Civil Group, has been missing since mid-February.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that he owes hundreds of thousands in unpaid wages to his own workers and millions more to about 50 subcontracting firms.

Creditors say Mr Santoro received millions of dollars in progress payments since Christmas but that none of it had gone to pay his workers or subcontractors.

 Court proceedings have since begun to wind up Elite Civil Group and its associated companies.

Members of outlaw bikie gangs and their associates meanwhile have turned up to seven construction sites across Sydney linked to Mr Santoro over the past month, loading on-site machinery onto trucks and driving off with it, including equipment belonging to plumbers and trucking companies who are also owed money, the Herald reports.

The standover tactics are said to be further evidence of underworld involvement in the construction industry. 

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Author: Erin Tennant, Approving editor: Martin Zavan