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The arrest of Elic Tang marks the first time a legal professional has been charged under Strike Force Myddleton — but detectives say the transaction chain involving brokers, bankers and solicitors remains firmly in their sights
A Sydney solicitor has been arrested and charged with facilitating more than $25 million in fraudulent property transactions for the Penthouse Syndicate, the criminal organisation that NSW Police allege has defrauded Australia's major banks of more than $250 million — marking the first time a legal professional has been charged in one of the most significant financial crime investigations this country has seen.
Elic Tang, 32, a partner and sole director of the boutique western Sydney firm Rosemont Partners, was arrested at his home in Sydney's western suburbs on Tuesday morning following the execution of search warrants across the city. He appeared at Bankstown Local Court on Wednesday, where he was refused bail and remanded in custody.
Tang faces twelve charges in total: six counts of dishonestly obtaining a financial advantage by deception, five counts of knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime, and one count of participating in a criminal group. Police allege he used his position within the legal sector to help syndicate members purchase multiple mortgaged properties worth more than $25 million, registered in the names of various members of the group, while also laundering millions of dollars on their behalf.
For mortgage brokers, the significance of the Tang arrest is not simply that a lawyer has been charged — it is what his role reveals about how the Penthouse Syndicate allegedly operated, and how comprehensively it appears to have penetrated every professional discipline involved in a property transaction.
The syndicate's alleged ringleader, Bing "Michael" Li, was arrested last year in the penthouse apartment of Crown's residential tower at Barangaroo, an address that gave the operation its name. Strike Force Myddleton, established by the NSW Police Financial Crimes Squad in January 2024, has since charged twenty-five alleged syndicate members.
The earlier arrests read as a systematic dismantling of the transaction chain. In November, NAB senior business banking manager Timotius "Donny" Sungkar — who began his career as a mortgage broker — was charged with facilitating almost $10 million in fraudulent business loans by fast-tracking applications for shell companies linked to the syndicate. In December, mortgage broker and former NAB and Commonwealth Bank employee Andrew W. Hu was charged with helping the syndicate secure almost $100 million in fraudulent mortgage and business loans.
Tang's arrest completes a pattern that should give every participant in the home loan process pause. A banker on the inside. A broker working the submission channel. A solicitor handling the conveyancing. Police allege the syndicate had all three.
Detective Superintendent Gordon Arbinja, commander of the Financial Crimes Squad, was unambiguous about what Tang's arrest signals. "This arrest is the first professional facilitator in a legal capacity charged under this strike force, and it sends a clear message that no role or qualification places anyone above the law," he said. "Our investigators will continue to target individuals who abuse their professional standing to support criminal networks, and the community can expect further arrests of this nature as inquiries progress."
For mortgage brokers, the operational implications are pointed. The syndicate allegedly worked by acquiring aged shelf companies with established trading histories, fabricating financial statements, inflating borrower incomes, and submitting documentation through trusted channels — channels that included accredited brokers with direct relationships to major lenders.
The NSW Crime Commission has now restrained approximately $95 million in assets linked to alleged syndicate members, including properties, vehicles, cash, jewellery, watches and luxury goods. AUSTRAC has separately called in ten lenders to share data as regulators seek to establish the true scale of AI-assisted mortgage fraud across the major banks — a parallel investigation that indicates the problem extends well beyond the Penthouse Syndicate itself.
For any broker who has had a client, introducer or referral partner connected to anomalous loan activity, the message from Arbinja's squad is clear: the investigation is ongoing, more arrests are expected, and no corner of the transaction chain is considered beyond scrutiny.
Tang is expected to make a bail application on Thursday. His solicitor declined to comment. Rosemont Partners' website was taken offline shortly after news of the arrest broke.
