The Labour Hire Authority for the Australian state of Victoria announced it cancelled the licence of a horticulture labour hire provider in the Yarra Valley area after it was discovered the new director of the company had been found guilty of offences related to drug trafficking.

Cancellation of the licence was reported this month.

The Labour Hire Authority reported Nico Keat had become the sole director of labour hire provider Ung Services Pty. Ltd. in November. However, neither the company nor Keat notified the authority that Keat was no longer “fit and proper” to serve as a director under the law. Keat had been found guilty of 12 offences relating to drug trafficking, theft and failure to answer bail among other things, the authority said.

Keat had previously applied for a labour hire licence for a separate firm, Amatak Labour Services Pty. Ltd. The Labour Hire Authority said it determined at that time that Keat was not a fit and proper person to run a labour hire firm.

“Dishonesty and illegal phoenix activity are not welcome in Victoria’s labour hire industry and will be found out,” Labour Hire Commissioner Steve Dargavel said. “The job of the Labour Hire Authority is to make sure that Victorians can have trust and confidence in those who are responsible for the wages and safety of Victorian labour hire workers.”