Prosecutors Drop Australian Mining Billionaire’s Charges Against Meta Over Scam Crypto Ads

Chief Judge Julie Wager of the Western Australia District Court on Friday accepted a submission from the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP) to discontinue three criminal charges Forrest had brought against Meta.

Forrest, often known by the nickname “Twiggy,” accused the social media giant of breaking Australia’s money laundering laws for failing to act against scam cryptocurrency ads using his name and likeness on Facebook.

Private prosecutions are rare in Australia—criminal prosecutions are normally led by the state—and typically restricted to lower courts, with serious charges like those leveled by Forrest needing to be heard in a higher court and prosecuted by the CDPP.

A CDPP spokesperson did not provide details on why the case had been discontinued but told Reuters there was insufficient evidence to continue the case.

Forrest said the incident “shows that Facebook is beyond the laws of Australia,” the Guardian reported, adding “that scams will continue to run rampant with no recourse for those who are duped by increasingly sophisticated technology on social media platforms that take no responsibility.”

A Meta spokesperson told Reuters scams were a complicated matter that affect every platform and that company’s “sympathy goes out to people who have been impacted” by the crypto scheme, adding: “Meta doesn’t want scams on its platforms and we will continue to work tirelessly to prevent them and protect our users.”