December 4, 2025 — 2:29pm
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A Murdoch University manager who funnelled more than $1 million worth of work to a company set up by his wife and his close friend has been jailed for 2½ years.
Dario Pacifici was hired as the university’s facilities manager in March 2021, but was sacked 18 months later after it was revealed he had instructed staff to start using BM OnDemand Pty Ltd, a company he was secretly involved with but did not disclose.
Dario Pacifici was funnelling contracts to a company he was involved in when he worked at Murdoch Univserity,
The company earned $1.06 million for work carried out at the campus, which prompted a Corruption and Crime Commission report that alleged serious misconduct by Pacifici.
The listed directors of the company were Pacifici’s then-fiancé, now wife, Joshna Shrestha, and a high school friend.
Pacifici was arrested and charged with one count of being a public officer who acts corruptly in the performance/discharge of functions.
On Thursday, he was sentenced in the District Court of WA, with Judge Charlotte Wallace slamming Pacifici’s attempt to “minimise” his offending and telling him he was motivated by nothing but greed.
“This was deliberate, strategic, persistent, corrupt behaviour,” Wallace said.
“There was nothing momentary about the commission of this offence – sometimes corruption can be momentary, but that is not the case here. There was planning, foresight.”
The court was told Pacifici bypassed the tender process of awarding the contract to maintain the university campus, but claimed he did so “to ensure that the most reliable contractor was employed”.
“That is not the case … tender processes are there for that reason,” Wallace said.
“You continue to fail to accept your offending. It’s corruption.
Dario Pacifici’s wife and best friend were the directors of the company.
“You are a very intelligent man. You knew you were in breach of various policies, and you took active steps to conceal your conduct which is why it wasn’t noticed for a period of time.
“[But] you justified it to yourself. You minimised your offending to yourself, and you’ve got to unpick it because it’s not justifiable offending.”
Pacifici approved payment for many of the 964 invoices sent to the university by BM OnDemand.
“You have caused harm to the integrity of the reputation to our public universities – there must be a flow on effect. Your actions have undermined the trust placed in the institution,” Wallace said.
The judge labelled Pacifici’s behaviour “persistent and ongoing in nature”.
“It involved you acting deliberately dishonest … [it was] a gross and serious breach of the trust that was placed in you,” she said.
“You engaged in the offending for one reason only, to gain financial benefit for yourself, your wife and your friends. You all benefited significantly.”
The court heard BM OnDemand went from “not existing” to being “very lucrative” as a result of the Murdoch University work that was funnelled to it.
Pacifici, 50, sobbed as details of his personal life were read to the court during his sentencing.
Since his arrest, Pacifici and Shrestha married and had a son.
Pacifici is a former student at Aquinas College
Wallace said Murdoch University was now “damaged” as a result of this corruption.
Pacifici was sentenced to 2½ years in prison but will be eligible for parole in March 2027.
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