Quyen Tu AU
Quyen Tu AU
On Tuesday 14 May 2002, Quyen Tu Au, aged 31 years, was reported as a missing person by the Major Fraud Section due to concerns as to his welfare.
Quyen Au was last seen operating an ATM card at the National Australia Bank ATM in Port Adelaide on 15 August 2000 at 12.21pm. At about 12.54pm he contacted a friend using his mobile telephone. This is the last known contact that Quyen had with any family or friends. Quyen Au is an Australian citizen who was born in Vietnam.
At the time of his disappearance, Quyen Au was being sought by police in relation to his suspected involvement in the theft of up to $400,000 in cash from automatic teller machines. After his disappearance, the theft of cash from ATMs continued by people who associated with Mr Au. Some of those people have since been convicted and imprisoned for their involvement in the thefts. Police suspect he may have been murdered. There is a $200,000 reward for information on this case.
If you have information that may assist police to locate Quyen, please call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
The last known images of a man who has been missing for more than 16 years and was linked to the theft of more than $6 million from an Asian bank account have been released by SA Police investigating his disappearance.
Police said they believed Quyen Tu Au was likely murdered, but his body has never been found.
Au was linked with the fraudulent use of a debit card, which was ultimately used to steal $6.326 million from a bank account held by the Bank of East Asia, police said.
Security video recorded by a Port Adelaide bank's ATM at 12:21pm on August 15, 2000, show the last known images of Au.
He was reported missing 18 months after the images were captured by police officers from the Major Fraud section, who were investigating his suspected involvement in the theft.
Despite extensive inquiries in South Australia and interstate, the last confirmed contact with Au was when he rang a friend from his mobile phone at 12:54pm on August 15, 2000.
Just minutes before that call, investigators know Au, who was born in Vietnam but moved to South Australia when he was 14, used the stolen bank debit card to withdraw $6,000 from a National Australia Bank (NAB) ATM in Port Adelaide.
Detective Inspector Greg Hutchins said this unauthorised withdrawal of cash was "just a small piece in the jigsaw puzzle of this case".
The debit card used was stolen in Brisbane on May 19, 2000, from a Hong Kong student.
Because of a computer processing error, the stolen card was able to be used to make unlimited withdrawals from NAB ATMs.
The first unauthorised transaction was on July 28, 2000, and in total Au was recorded on security cameras 41 times conducting 465 transactions.
The last of those was on August 15 when he made 12 transactions, the last at 12:35pm.
Police said by that time about $396,000 had been stolen from the bank account.
After August 15, three other people were recorded on ATM security cameras using the card to withdraw money from the account.
On October 19, 2000, NAB became aware of the unauthorised transactions and the stolen card was retained by an ATM at the Tea Tree Plaza Shopping Centre, prompting a police investigation.
"We believe that between 28 July 2000 and 19 October 2000 the stolen card was used 6,797 times to withdraw a total of $6,326,320, principally in $50 notes from NAB ATMs," Detective Inspector Hutchins said.
In November that year, police searched 16 Adelaide properties and found about $4.07 million in cash under the floorboards of the main bedroom of a property in Kitchener Street at Kilburn.
Four people were arrested and charged with offences relating to the use of the stolen card, but despite extensive inquiries, police said Au was never found.
"We know that until 5th August 2000, Mr Au was residing at Rosewater Lodge in Rosewater, but we also have information, supplied anonymously via Crime Stoppers, that he was staying at the Kitchener Street address where the cash was found," Detective Inspector Hutchins said.
"There is a $200,000 reward available in connection with this case, not just for information leading to a conviction of the person or persons responsible, but for the recovery of Mr Au's remains.
"His family and friends are entitled to know what became of their loved one and we are appealing for help in bringing some resolution to this matter."
Posted on 15/08/2019 Crimestoppers SA
On Tuesday 14 May 2002, Quyen Tu Au, aged 31 years, was reported as a missing person by the Major Fraud Section due to concerns as to his welfare.
Mr Au was an Australian citizen who was born in Vietnam.
It is believed that Au has been murdered, but his body has never been found.
Au was linked with the fraudulent use of a debit card, which was ultimately used to steal $6.326 million from a bank account held by the Bank of East Asia.
Security video recorded by a Port Adelaide bank’s ATM at 12:21pm on August 15, 2000, shows the last known images of Au as he withdrew $6000 using a stolen bank debit card
At about 12.54 p.m. the same date Mr Au contacted a friend using his mobile telephone. This is the last known contact that Mr Au had with any family or friends.
At the time of his disappearance, Mr Au was being sought by police in relation to his suspected involvement in the theft of up to $400,000 in cash from automatic teller machines.
The debit card used was stolen in Brisbane on May 19, 2000, from a Hong Kong student.
Because of a computer processing error, the stolen card was able to be used to make unlimited withdrawals from NAB ATMs.
The first unauthorised transaction was on July 28, 2000, and in total Au was recorded on security cameras 41 times conducting 465 transactions. The last of those was on August 15 when he made 12 transactions, the last at 12:35pm.
After August 15, three other people were recorded on ATM security cameras using the card to withdraw money from the account. On October 19, 2000, NAB became aware of the unauthorised transactions and the stolen card was retained by an ATM at the Tea Tree Plaza Shopping Centre.
In November 2000, police searched 16 Adelaide properties and found about $4.07 million in cash under the floorboards of the main bedroom of a property in Kitchener Street at Kilburn.
Four people were arrested and charged with offences relating to the use of the stolen card, but Au was never found.
Police know that until 5th August 2000, Au was residing at Rosewater Lodge in Rosewater, but information supplied anonymously via Crime Stoppers suggests that he had also stayed at the Kitchener Street address where the cash was found.
A reward of up to $200,000 is on offer to anyone who either provides information leading to the recovery of his remains or information leading to a conviction in the case.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or at www.crimestopperssa.com.au