Former shire deputy continued offending after March arrest, police allege

The former deputy CEO of a Mid West council has been charged by police with a further 46 offences - including possessing drugs - which police allege took place after his March arrest for similar offending.

Earlier this year Sam Curulli, 27, was accused of attempting to gain benefit by fraud, corruption, and stealing between May and December 2025, while helping to run the Mid West council.

At the time police said Curulli used expense accounts to obtain items for his own personal benefit, and also sold some of the ordered products, pocketing the money for himself.

Now he faces a raft of new similar charges, along with two charges of supplying a prohibited drug, possession of methylamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

In a statement released on Saturday, a WA Police spokeswoman said Curulli had been charged with a further 46 offences which they allege took place between his arrest in March this year and now.

Along with the drug allegations, they include 16 counts of gaining benefit by fraud, six counts of made, used or supplied identification material with intent to commit an offence, one count of possession of identification material with intent to commit an offence and two counts of breaching protective bail conditions.

In a statement released by police in March, they claimed Curulli attended the Shire of Coorow offices the day after he was sacked and allegedly stole items valued at about $3,000.

“Police will allege upon termination, the man committed an act of perjury by unlawfully accessing social media and email accounts to send himself false messages, which were utilised to obtain a court order,” they said.

The commerce-graduate was appointed deputy chief executive at the Shire of Coorow in 2025, when he was 26 years old, after having worked as a governance officer at two metropolitan councils.

According to his LinkedIn profile, he left the Shire in December 2025, and in February this year, commenced as the deputy chief executive at the Shire of Cuballing.

A ‘welcome to the team’ notice posted after Curulli’s appointment at the Shire of Coorow, the council stated that he was “an experienced individual with a demonstrated history across a range of portfolios including governance and strategy, legal and risk, procurement and contracts, community development and special projects”.

“Sam is very keen to be part of the Coorow, Leeman and Green Head communities and cannot wait to get started,” it read.

He is due before Perth Magistrates Court in Northbridge on Saturday in relation to the new charges.