Courgette owner James Mussillon pleads guilty to money laundering, perjury, fraud charges in ACT Magistrates Court

Courgette restaurant owner James Mussillon, 50, was granted bail in the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday after more than seven months in Canberra's jail, from which he appeared via video link.

Mussillon had, moments earlier, pleaded guilty to charges of money laundering, perjury, obtaining property by deception, making false evidence, and general dishonesty influencing a public official.

A further six charges, including perverting the course of justice and three counts of dealing with proceeds of crime, were withdrawn.

Few details of Thursday's proceedings can be reported because they were conducted almost entirely in closed court at the request of Mussillon's lawyer, Tom Taylor.

Magistrate Robert Cook briefly reopened the court at the end of the matter to announce he had granted Mussillon bail and committed the 50-year-old to the ACT Supreme Court for sentencing.

Documents outlining the details of Mussillon's crimes are yet to be agreed by prosecutors and the chef's legal representatives.

When the renowned restaurateur was arrested and remanded in custody last August, investigators alleged he had used his exclusive Civic eatery to launder the proceeds of co-accused Mohammed Al-Mofathel's "significant" drug-dealing activities.

There were also allegations Mussillon had lied to a court about employing Mr Al-Mofathel, who has pleaded not guilty to a raft of charges.

The accused pair's homes, in Bonner and Holt, were raided on the morning of their arrests, as was the Courgette restaurant.

ACT Policing said officers seized more than $135,000 in cash, a gel blaster firearm, a commercial money counter, electronic devices and steroids during searches at those three places.

Police also restrained more than $1 million in assets, including a Lamborghini coupe and two other cars, linked to Mussillon and Mr Al-Mofathel. A restraining order effectively freezes suspected criminal assets to enable their potential confiscation at a later date.

Mussillon's case is now due to go before the registrar of the Supreme Court on April 7, when the process of setting a date for his sentencing is likely to begin.

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