Former Canberra criminal defence lawyer Ben Aulich faces trial for alleged conspiracy to launder money

Former prominent Canberra criminal defence lawyer Ben Aulich was brought before the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory along with his co-defendant, accountant Michael Papandrea, on charges of conspiracy to launder money.

Mr Aulich and Mr Panpandrea were arrested in 2020 when police raided Mr Aulich's city office, another office in Kingston and a business in Queanbeyan.

Mr Aulich is also accused of incitement to commit a crime.

During today's appearance, the Australian Capital Territory Magistrates Court heard that an undercover police officer had sought legal advice from Mr Aulich, who claimed that police had seized $100,000 he had earned from selling illegal cigarettes.

Mr Aulich and Mr Papandrea are accused of having held discussions with the man about opening a supermarket in order to launder the money.

Her lawyers described the situation as a “classic case of a trap” and said the crime was conceived in the mind of the undercover agent.

But today Judge Sean Richter rejected that statement, saying that the contribution of Mr Aulich and Mr Papandrea was crucial “in creating a situation in which [the undercover officer] could launder money”.

Judge Richter found that there was sufficient evidence to bring the case to trial.

Mr Aulich recently left the law firm that bears his name and his lawyer, Peter Woodhouse, has since withdrawn from the case.

Both Mr Aulich and Mr Papandrea will appear in court again later this year.