Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(Aus.) to defraud, to trick.

1939		K. Tennant Foveaux 312: ‘I brassed a mug yesterday [...] and everything’s sweet again.’ He flashed a roll of notes as big as his fist.
1949		L. Glassop Lucky Palmer 70: ‘You’re not going to put it on?’ [...] ‘Are you fair dinkum?’ he asked, ‘I’m going to brass him for it.’.
1968		J. Alard He who Shoots Last 87: At da meetin’ he brassed all da bookies.
1975		Bulletin (Sydney) 26 Apr. 45: He’s a rat ... wouldn’t give you up or brass you ... no way. Just that he’s a rat.
1985		R.G. Barrett You Wouldn’t Be Dead for Quids (1989) 83: Les moved in, after brassing his Jewish landlord for exactly that amount of rent.
1990		Tupper & Wortley Aus. Prison Sl. Gloss. 🌐 Brass. 2. To defraud or cheat another prisoner. ‘You’re brassed’ is a declaration employed by a prisoner to indicate that he has no intention of repaying a debt.
1992		R.G. Barrett White Shoes 2: Now and again Norton might bump into one of his old landlords or an estate agent he’d brassed out.
2002		R.G. Barrett Mystery Bay Blues 18: ‘That’s not very nice, Les.’ ‘No. And neither’s brassing me for two hundred dollars’.