Hi there. From the information provided, it appears that you may have received money that was obtained by your colleague via illegal means. There are various state and federal laws that make it a criminal offence for someone to deal with proceeds of a crime (sometimes called ‘money laundering’).

For example, in South Australia, a person will commit a crime if they directly or indirectly receive or possess property (including money) that the person knows to have been obtained by illegal means. This crime is punishable by imprisonment of up to 20 years. A less serious offence exists for a person who receives this type of property in circumstances in which they ought reasonably to have known (but did not actually know) that the property had been obtained by illegal means. The maximum punishment is 4 years’ imprisonment.

Similar laws exist at the federal level. For example, a person commits an offence if they dishonestly receive stolen property, knowing or believing the property to be stolen. The penalty is up to 10 years’ imprisonment.

Importantly, the laws dealing with receipt of stolen property or proceeds of crime generally prohibit a person ‘knowingly’ or ‘dishonestly’ receiving that property, or at least recklessly receiving the property when they should have known it was obtained illegally. A person who innocently receives the property, without notice of actual or suspected illegal conduct by the person providing the property, is not likely to commit a criminal offence.