Australian Federal Police officers have raided the home of former senior CFMEU official John Perkovic as part of an intensifying corruption investigation into Victoria’s construction industry. The early‑morning operation saw at least six officers and a sniffer dog arrive at Perkovic’s Keilor property in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, where they searched the backyard and inspected a black Range Rover parked in the driveway.
The raid was carried out under Operation Rye, the AFP’s ongoing probe into allegations of serious wrongdoing within the militant construction union. Perkovic briefly left the house as officers continued their search.
Perkovic spent more than a decade as a CFMEU organiser in Victoria during the leadership of John Setka, one of the union’s most controversial figures. After the CFMEU was placed under administration in 2024 amid widespread allegations of misconduct, Perkovic was promoted to second‑in‑charge a position he held until October 2025, when media reports exposed corruption allegations against him and he was dismissed.
His Keilor property has since become central to the corruption claims detailed in a report by anti‑corruption barrister Geoffrey Watson, submitted to Queensland’s Commission of Inquiry into the CFMEU. The report outlines alleged financial irregularities and misconduct linked to Perkovic, forming a key part of the evidence now being examined by federal investigators.
The AFP’s raid marks a significant escalation in the national crackdown on corruption within the construction sector, signalling that further investigative steps and potentially more raids may follow.
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