Former AFL umpire Troy Pannell has reportedly been jailed for 11 weeks after dodging his ongoing court case linked to an alleged $8.7 million fraud charge.
Pannell was handed an 11-week term for multiple contempt-of-court offences after he disobeyed direct court orders regarding the disclosure of all his assets.
It is understood that Pannell breached a freezing order by selling a racehorse ($150,000) in April after the court ordered him not to, per the Herald Sun.
The AFL adjudicator worked for a shipping company alongside his 16 years in the AFL and was suspended in June 2024 following the fraud investigation.
Pannell allegedly had a warrant issued for his arrest after claims he masterminded the multimillion-dollar fraud of logistics company SeaRoad Shipping.
It is understood that Pannell had allegedly created a fake company that claimed to repair damaged containers for $800 to $900 each. This supposedly took place from 2015 to 2024, with SeaRoad allegedly paying the firm created by Pannell, Independent Container Surveyors & Assessors (ICSA), $8.7m.
The conspiracy reportedly became unstuck when a SeaRoad finance manager discovered the company had not registered for GST during a compliance review.
Pannell had reportedly represented himself in the Supreme Court civil trial on July 18.
Justice Watson, according to Channel 7, said Pannell had failed to comply with the court's orders.
"Here the disobedience was contumacious," he said.
The judge considered Pannell's lack of submitted affidavits to the plaintiff as serious contempt that spanned several months, showing a willful disregard for the court.
"(His) failure to present the affidavits (meant) for six months, the plaintiff doesn't have a complete picture of his assets," Justice Watson said.
Pannell will serve his prison sentences for his charges concurrently and has already spent 54 days on remand, writes the news outlet.
He retired from professional umpiring in 2019 due to soft-tissue issues. He officiated 219 AFL games, including one controversial contest between the Western Bulldogs and Adelaide in 2016, where he awarded 17 free kicks to the former.
