An Australian postal service worker tasked with organizing the creation of special stamps for the “Australian of the Year” was in court this week facing insider betting charges.
Dale Tristan Young, leveraging his privileged position to know the winner of the prestigious national award beforehand, allegedly passed this information to an old school friend and gambler, James Matthew Dawkins. Prosecutors claim the duo profited to the tune of A$13,302 (US$8,650) from betting on the winner between 2017 and 2019.
The Australian of the Year Award honors a national figure who has done the country proud in the preceding 12 months, with previous recipients spanning eminent pioneers in science, medicine, the arts, and sports. Notable past winners include controversial businessman Alan Bond and Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan.
For every Australian of the Year, the postal service creates a commemorative stamp, a tradition that affords a small circle of judges and postal workers advance knowledge of the winner. This information becomes particularly valuable in a country where betting on awards ceremonies is legal, creating an avenue for potential insider betting.
In markets like the US, wagering on predicable events is generally prohibited, though New Jersey allows betting on the Oscars. In contrast, jurisdictions such as Australia and the UK permit such wagers. Sportsbooks, being vigilant around these markets, keep an eye out for suspicious betting patterns which generate publicity yet remain relatively small in comparison to sports betting.
Between 2017 and 2019, Dawkins placed 48 successful bets across various sportsbooks. His winning streak, which included backing biomedical scientist Alan Mackay-Sim in 2017, quantum physicist Michelle Simmons in 2018, and Craig Challen and Richard Harris for their heroic rescue of a youth soccer team from Thailand’s flooded Tham Lang caves in 2019, raised alarms and led operators to alert federal crime agencies.
On Thursday, both Young and Dawkins pleaded guilty to abuse of public office offenses at the Dandenong Magistrates Court near Melbourne. They currently face a maximum of 12 months in prison or a fine of approximately A$16,000, now making them improbable candidates for next year’s Australian of the Year accolade.
