Mr Justin Benjamin James Brinkies, of Woodcroft, South Australia, has been disqualified from managing corporations for two years for his involvement in seven failed companies.

Between 2010 and 2019, Mr Brinkies was a director of seven companies:

• Trojan Agile Group Pty Ltd ACN 603 412 577 (Trojan Agile);
• 75603366294 Pty Ltd [formerly Trojan Security (Aust) Pty Ltd] ACN 603 366 294 (Trojan Aust);
• ACN 622 609 116 Pty Ltd [formerly Trojan Security (AU/NZ) Pty Ltd] ACN 622 609 116 (Trojan AU/NZ);
• 59138153689 Pty Ltd [formerly Trojan Security ESM (QLD) Pty Ltd] ACN 138 153 689 (Trojan QLD);
• Trojan Alliance Pty Ltd ACN 158 858 925;
• CSA Traffic Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 147 775 568; and
• 94603355844 Pty Ltd [formerly Trojan Security (VIC/TAS Pty Ltd] ACN 603 355 844 (Trojan VIC/TAS).

Most of the companies were part of the Trojan group of companies that operated around Australia providing security services.

ASIC found that Mr Brinkies:

• Failed to ensure that Trojan Agile, Trojan Aust and Trojan AU/NZ complied with their obligations to lodge documents with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO);
• Failed to ensure that Trojan Agile and Trojan Aust made all superannuation guarantee contribution payments for their employees;
• Failed to ensure that Trojan Agile, Trojan Aust and Trojan VIC/TAS maintained adequate books and records;
• Caused the sale of the business and assets of Trojan Agile, Trojan Aust and Trojan VIC/TAS to Trojan AU/NZ without ensuring that consideration was received by those companies;
• Enabled related-party loans and director drawings to be made by Trojan Aust and Trojan AU/NZ in circumstances where the loans were not repaid or were unlikely to be repaid;
• Failed to prevent Trojan Agile, Trojan Aust and Trojan AU/NZ from incurring debts while they were insolvent; and
• Failed to provide Trojan Aust’s liquidator with certain information as requested.

At the time of ASIC’s decision, the seven companies owed unsecured creditors $6,978,545, which included approximately $3.5 million owed to the ATO.

In making its decision to disqualify Mr Brinkies, ASIC relied on supplementary reports lodged by the liquidator of Trojan Agile, Mr David Kidman of KPMG, the liquidator of Trojan Aust, Mr Andrew Hewitt of Grant Thornton, and the liquidator of Trojan AU/NZ, Mr Giovanni Carrello of BRI Ferrier. ASIC assisted the liquidators of Trojan Agile, Trojan Aust and Trojan AU/NZ to prepare supplementary reports by providing funding from the Assetless Administration Fund.

At the time of ASIC’s decision, Mr Brinkies was already disqualified from managing corporations by virtue of being a bankrupt since September 2019.

Mr Brinkies’ is disqualified until 14 September 2023.

Background

Section 206F of the Corporations Act allows ASIC to disqualify a person from managing corporations for up to five years if, within a seven-year period, the person was an officer of two or more companies that were wound up and the liquidators lodge reports with ASIC about each company’s inability to pay its debts or alleges misconduct.

ASIC also maintains a banned and disqualified persons register that provides information about people who have been disqualified from:

• involvement in the management of a corporation,
• auditing self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs), or
• practicing in the financial services of credit industry.