James Pinder and George Haritos jailed in V/Line corruption scandal

Former V/Line chief executive James Pinder and Transclean director George Haritos have been jailed following a major corruption scandal involving cleaning contracts for Victoria’s regional rail network.

Pinder was sentenced in the Victorian County Court to two years and eight months in prison for misconduct of public office. The court heard that between 2018 and 2020, Pinder accepted approximately $330,000 in bribes to favor Transclean, a cleaning company owned by his associate, Haritos. These payments included a $10,000 cash bundle left in his car and $320,000 toward the purchase of a home in Williamstown.

George Haritos received a sentence of two years and three months for conspiracy and giving secret commissions. The investigation, conducted by the Victorian corruption watchdog IBAC under Operation Esperance, revealed a network of family and professional associates who worked to corrupt the tendering process for contracts valued at over $40 million to $54 million.

Other individuals involved, including Transclean co-director Alex Kyritsis and employees Steven Kyritsis and Maria Tsakopoulos, received community corrections orders and were ordered to perform unpaid community service.