Mo Du found guilty on seven of 10 counts of deception after he was accused of deceiving three Chinese investors
A man has been found guilty of most of the charges against him after he was accused of selling three Adelaide properties to Chinese investors at an inflated price.
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A man has been found guilty of most of the charges against him after he was accused of selling three Adelaide properties to “experienced” Chinese investors at an inflated price.
Mo Du, 35, was standing trial in the District Court after he was charged with a total of nine counts of deception for selling the commercial properties between 2014 and 2017.
Du was found unanimously guilty by a jury on seven counts and not guilty on two.
Kosmas Lesses, for prosecution, told the court throughout the trial that Du misrepresented the price of three properties – one at 157 Waymouth St in Adelaide, one at 79 Port Rd, Thebarton and one at 9-11 Dequetteville Tce, Kent Town.
“A significant portion of the complainants’ purchase funds was allegedly on unrelated things like house purchases, expensive motor vehicles, personal expenses and large ATM cash withdrawals,” he said.
The investors previously told the court they trusted Du to invest their money given the uncle-nephew-like relationship he had with one of them.
“At the time we believe everything that was told to us by Mr Du. I believed him,” Hongyu Zhao, one of the investors, said.
Lawyer Chris Kammerow said the three investors were not deceived as to the price of the properties and was attempting to ensure they made a profit.
“Mo Du and (his co-accused) were working to ensure that the three Chinese investors made a lot of money out of these deals; and the Chinese investors knew it,” he said.
“They entered these deals with their eyes wide open.
“Remembering of course, ladies and gentlemen, that particularly Dong Lyu and Hongyu Zhao are very experienced property developers in China.”
Mr Kammerow also argued that Du would not have deceived the investors as it would have had negative impacts for him too.
“They were on the hook, as it were, as much as, if not more so than the three Chinese investors,” he said.
“That is to say that Mo Du and (his co-accused) had quite a lot to lose when it came to these three property investments. It was not in their interest for these property developments to fail.”
Du will next appear in the District Court for sentencing submissions next month.
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