Troy Stolz

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Troy Graham Stolz is an Australian whistleblower and gambling reform advocate. He is currently serving as a councillor for the Upper Hunter Shire Council since the 2024 New South Wales local government elections. [1]

Contents

He was the head of ClubsNSW's anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism unit until 2019. [2] He leaked an internal report that stated that 95% of registered clubs in New South Wales were non-compliant with anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism laws. [2]

ClubsNSW lawsuit

Stolz was sued by ClubsNSW, with the former employer arguing that he owed a duty of confidence, and that Stolz had used confidential documents in his consulting work after leaving ClubsNSW. [3] The charges were settled shortly after ClubsNSW's CEO was fired. [4] [5]

The decision to sue Stolz was widely criticised in the press, [6] with casino mogul James Packer calling the lawsuit "ruthless [and] unethical". [7]

As part of the lawsuit, ClubsNSW obtained injunctive relief restraining Stolz from speaking about the conduct of ClubsNSW in a way that could "bring improper pressure on the respondent". [8] After an interview with YouTuber Jordan Shanks, both Stolz and Shanks were the target of criminal contempt of court proceedings for violating the restraining order, with ClubsNSW acting as a private prosecutor. [3] These charges were dropped in February 2023. [9]

Political career

Stolz ran as an independent candidate in Kogarah at the 2023 New South Wales state election, campaigning on a platform of cashless gaming reform. [10] [11] His candidacy directly opposed Labor leader, Chris Minns, running for the same seat. Stolz called on the Labor leader to join in on the Liberal's plan to transition New South Wales to cashless pokies by 2028. [12] Minns expressed reticence due to potential risks of exacerbating money loss during gambling. [13] Stolz placed 4th, garnering 2,186 votes, or 4.3% of the votes. [14]

In the 2024 New South Wales local government elections, Soltz ran as a councillor for the Upper Hunter Shire. He was elected in fourth place, garnering a total of 893 votes, or 10.9%. [1]

Other advocacy

In November 2023, Stolz joined other whistleblowers in an open letter condemning the prosecution of Australian Army whistleblower David McBride. [15]

Personal life

Stolz is currently battling stage 4 bone cancer. [5] [16]

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References

  1. 1 2 Flaherty, Elizabeth (1 October 2024). "Editorial: Out with the Old, In with the New". scone.com.au. Archived from the original on 2 November 2024. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
  2. 1 2 Alexander, Harriet (2022-09-21). "'I've nothing to lose': Dying whistleblower sued by ClubsNSW". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  3. 1 2 Knaus, Christopher (2022-09-02). "Friendlyjordies' Jordan Shanks and ClubsNSW whistleblower face criminal contempt proceedings". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  4. ↑ "ClubsNSW drops lawsuits against gaming whistleblower". PerthNow. 2023-02-07. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  5. 1 2 McGowan, Michael (2023-02-07). "ClubsNSW settles case with terminally ill whistleblower Troy Stolz". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  6. ↑ Alexander, Harriet (2023-02-10). "After a row with his wife and a night in the caravan, Troy Stolz made a tough decision". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  7. ↑ Alexander, Harriet (2022-09-30). "James Packer hits out at ClubsNSW's 'ruthless unethical behaviour'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  8. ↑ Knaus, Christopher (2021-11-17). "ClubsNSW wins federal court order restraining whistleblower from 'intimidating' statements". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  9. ↑ Knaus, Christopher (2023-02-16). "ClubsNSW drops contempt charges against Friendlyjordies over pokies whistleblower". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  10. ↑ January 12; 2023 - 6:17pm (2023-01-12), Gambling whistleblower Troy Stolz challenging Chris Minns at state election , retrieved 2023-11-08{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ↑ Gibbs, Erik (2023-01-12). "Australia's Gambling Failings Whistleblower Running for Political Seat in NSW". Casino.org. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  12. ↑ "Ex candidate's surprise admission on Minns". The Albany Advertiser. 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  13. ↑ Wang, Jessica (March 9, 2023). "NSW State Election 2023: Chris Minns, Troy Stolz face off in Kogarah candidate forum". News.com.au.
  14. ↑ "NSW STATE ELECTION RESULTS 2023". pastvtr.elections.nsw.gov.au. NSW Electoral Commission. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  15. ↑ Crosswell, Sally (2023-11-07). "Whistleblowers rally before McBride trial". Proctor. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  16. ↑ Foote, Callum (2022-12-09). "Feds to step into Troy Stolz case after ClubsNSW hammers pokies whistleblower for four days". Michael West . Retrieved 2023-11-09.
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