‘A big fishing expedition’: Tax office launches probe into case with devastating outcome

5 hours ago 2

By Dan Nolan and Georgia Done

July 14, 2025 — 7.10pm

The Australian Tax Office has launched an independent review into its handling of a case where a businessman was arrested and jailed over a legal battle that he ultimately won.

The review comes after Jae Jang, who had sought all necessary approvals for a new alcohol product, was pursued by the ATO for alleged fraud.

It took Jang more than a decade to prove his innocence. During the process, he lost his sister Deannah, who took her own life after also being targeted by ATO action.

“When [the ATO] come for you, it’s absolutely relentless,” Jang said. “I barely survived. My sister obviously didn’t.”

Jang’s business, Divas, planned to launch a new line of flavoured, wine-based products.

Because the beverages were made entirely from grape-related ingredients, Jang believed they would be taxed as wine without the much higher excise applied to spirits.

He followed the necessary steps, seeking an ATO private ruling about the innovative drinks before starting production, which was granted.

But his products were seen as a threat to the big players in the alcohol industry who lobbied the tax office. What followed led to an agonising dispute that almost destroyed him, his family and his staff.

Debbie Ingleton and her husband, Bill, worked alongside Jang when the ATO turned its attention to his tax affairs.

Debbie Ingleton’s husband, Bill, who also worked with Jang.

The Ingleton family home was raided as part of what became a criminal investigation, and at the time, they received around 10 to 12 calls a day from the ATO.

“They went through everything. They went through personal stuff, my underwear drawer,” Debbie told A Current Affair.

“They kept asking my husband, Bill, where the money was, and he said, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about. There’s no money here. We rent, we struggle.’”

Debbie had a history of cancer and had severe mental health issues at the time.

A letter from her psychologist stated she was suffering from “severe depression with suicidal tendencies” and her “symptoms are being exacerbated by ... the ATO”.

She claimed the ATO continued these practices after receiving her psychologist’s letter.

“I would lock myself in the home bathroom and think of ways to kill myself, because I was so desperate,” Ingleton said.

She suffered a nervous breakdown and was hospitalised.

One tax officer was removed from the case, allegedly due to “non-compliance with ATO guidelines”.

Jang’s sister Deannah, an academic at Bond University, decided to help her brother as his companies battled to survive.

She helped finance a New Zealand operation when the ATO decided to apply the higher spirit excise to the products in Australia before the Federal Court could adjudicate on the new tax rate.

The ATO then made her a target too, raising an unexpected new tax assessment and immediately garnishing her wage from Bond University.

“It totally destroyed her mentally. After all, she’s not a businesswoman. She’s an academic assisting the family to ensure we survive through our business,” Jang said.

Deannah took her own life on November 1, 2017, for which Jae Jang blames the ATO.

Six weeks after his sister’s death, Jang was arrested outside his Sydney home with his eight-year-old son upstairs.

He was held in jail overnight and charged with two counts of conspiracy to defraud the tax office, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years jail.

Jang’s criminal charges were eventually dropped after 2½ years. Court records reveal the prosecution had “no evidence to offer.”

“I felt relief, but also I felt very angry,” he said. “Why did this ever take place?”

Debbie and Bill Ingleton were also criminally charged. Bill was cleared at the same time as Jang, but Debbie was forced to wait another 13 months with a jail sentence hanging over her head.

“Bill had said to me to stay home and just let the lawyer handle it. And I said no, I have to hear it for myself. I have to hear the judge say, ‘you’re dismissed of all charges,’” Debbie said.

“It was just, in my opinion, a big fishing expedition.”

Two months after the charges were dropped, Bill Ingleton was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer.

“I blame the ATO for killing my husband – well, contributing to it,” Debbie said.

An ATO spokesperson said it “always welcomes scrutiny against its administration of the tax system” but declined to answer the majority of 33 questions sent, citing confidentiality obligations.

The spokesperson later stated it would be “initiating an independent review to examine the issues in full” and the review will “thoroughly consider the issues dating back over a decade”.

“We recognise the unfortunate circumstances and appreciate the seriousness of the issues that have been raised,” the spokesperson said.

“The findings of this review will guide what actions are required.”

If you, or someone you know, needs support you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636.

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