The VIDA said the allegations had not been previously reported to it and that it has now referred the allegations to police for investigation.
Last year, Victoria Police formed Taskforce Hawk in response to the Building Bad investigation by this masthead, The Australian Financial Review and 60 Minutes, which exposed widespread criminality within the construction industry, including bashings, firebombings and intimidation tactics.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan at the North-East Link road project in June.Credit: Justin McManus
Last week, this masthead revealed in an unrelated incident that a military veteran, who assists struggling ex-soldiers in securing jobs on the North East Link, alleges he was coerced into paying a figure with gangland ties to gain access to the $26 billion government project.
Former soldier Daniel Salter is the first subcontractor on the Victorian government’s Big Build program to publicly detail the alleged corruption permeating the North East Link, a project also receiving billions in federal government funding.
Salter claimed the situation effectively shut out marginalised workers, including veterans with PTSD, from securing meaningful employment opportunities, instead favouring individuals with insider connections.
The 10-kilometre North East Link, designed to connect the Eastern Freeway in Bulleen with the Metropolitan Ring Road at Greensborough, is projected to remove 15,000 trucks from suburban streets and cut travel times by 30 minutes.
The toll road has been plagued by significant budget blowouts. Initially estimated at $10 billion in 2016, the cost was reassessed to $15 billion in 2019, with the most recent estimate in December 2023 soaring to $26 billion – more than double the original price tag. The project is expected to open in 2028.
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