In 1988 De Stefano was awarded the Order of Australia medal for his services to migrant communities.
[2] Some of those he stole from included Tomislav Papic, a quadriplegic who was awarded a record A$6 million settlement in a successful lawsuit against the Geelong Hospital.
The victim impact statement filed by his father sets out clearly the trauma that he and his family suffered by reason of your theft.
De Stefano gambled approximately A$6.6 million during many visits to Crown Casino in Melbourne and spending the remainder (approx.
A$1.5 million) on personal expenses, including travel, renovations on his Eastern Beach (Geelong) home and donations to the Liberal Party.
[5] De Stefano gave evidence on four occasions as a witness in the committal and trials of law clerk Julian Michael Clarke in the murder of Keith William Allan.
The verdict at the first trial was annulled by the Victorian Court of Appeal, owing to a legal technicality.
David Pearson, forensic accountant with the Victoria Police Major Fraud Group, told the jury that De Stefano was laundering money via Clarke using a series of round-robin financial transactions[17] channelled through Allan's trust account totalling $3.75 million.