A TOWNSVILLE climate scientist accused of ripping off his Federal Government employer for more than seven years will face court next month.

The Townsville Bulletin can reveal that Dr Daniel Michael Alongi, 59, was arrested by the Australian Federal Police on September 6 after search warrants were executed at his home in Annandale and at his office at the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences (AIMS).

He was charged with obtaining a financial advantage from a Commonwealth entity, namely AIMS, by deception.

The charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment.

He has also been charged with one count of dealing with the proceeds of crime worth $100,000 or more which carries a maximum term of 20 years behind bars.

The American-born Dr Alongi has been an employee of AIMS, a Commonwealth research facility based at Cape Cleveland, since 1989.

His LinkedIn account lists his position as the Senior Principal Research Scientist at AIMS but his name has since been removed from the online AIMS staff register.

Court documents reveal that Dr Alongi is accused of obtaining a financial advantage from AIMS by deception between July 1, 2008 and September 6, 2015.

It is further alleged that between those dates Dr Alongi knowingly dealt with money known to be the proceeds of a crime.

It is not known how much Dr Alongi is accused of taking from AIMS but the proceeds of crime charge itself relates to money worth more than $100,000.

The case against him was briefly mentioned in the Townsville Magistrates Court on September 8.

Dr Alongi was granted bail and ordered to surrender his passport. He was also ordered to report to police weekly.

Dr Alongi’s arrest is expected to come as a surprise to many in the local sciences field.

As a scientist, Dr Alongi has been published in numerous journals, nationally and internationally.

His key research focuses have been the Great Barrier Reef, coastal mangroves, coastal ecosystems and the impact of climate change.

In 2005, Dr Alongi revealed that researchers had unearthed 9000-year-old mangroves in old river channels that were swamped when sea levels rose after the last ice age.

A spokeswoman for AIMS said Dr Alongi’s position had been suspended pending the outcome of the court proceedings.