Wife, son and mother of Bra Boys surf gang member Cade Dallas clash in SA court over his $30 million Balinese clothing empire
EXCLUSIVE: His gang inspired a Home and Away story but the death and $30 million estate of a Bra Boys surfer has sparked its own soap opera of faked signatures, Islamic law and bitter family feuding.
- Bra Boy’s mother, widow go to war for $30 million estate
- Judge: Bra Boy’s mother “sitting on fortune”, not helping grandson
- Set for trial: Fate of Bra Boy’s fortune to be decided in Adelaide
- My Brother’s Keeper: Bra Boys’ founder reveals his “new life”
HIS surf gang inspired a Home and Away storyline but the life, death and $30 million estate of Bra Boys member Cade Dallas has sparked a soap opera of its own in court.
The Supreme Court will this week sift through allegedly fake signatures, invalid divorces and Islamic religious law to determine who controls Dallas’ clothing empire in Bali.
The late surfer’s Adelaide-based widow, Veny Amelia, and son Keanu are suing his mother, Kerrie, over Dallas’ final, handwritten will — which he signed with a smiley face.
They accuse Mrs Dallas of funding a “lavish” lifestyle with her son’s fortune, but she says the duo have scandalised her good name for years without “a skerrick” of proof.
Cade Dallas died in Indonesia in 2012 — a year later, Ms Amelia filed suit against Mrs Dallas on behalf of the couple’s son, Keanu.
She claims Cade’s business, called “Somewhere”, was worth $30 million and that its profits should provide for Keanu.
Opening the trial on Tuesday, Greg Finlayson, for Ms Amelia, conceded his client had attempted to divorce Cade in 2006.
However, he said Cade’s signature “had been falsified on the document” by an Indonesian official, making it invalid.
The couple then reconciled but, in 2010, Cade attempted to divorce Ms Amelia — Ms Finlayson said she was never served with the papers, rendering it invalid also.
“If she, as we say, remained the lawful wife of the deceased, there’s continuing entitlement to half of his assets,” he said.
He said Ms Amelia was also entitled to the other half of Cade’s estate because his final will was invalid under Australian law.
Mr Finlayson said Mrs Dallas had failed in her responsibilities operator of the business as “records have not been kept” of its finances.
“We are entitled to the benefits that Mrs Dallas has obtained by virtue of running the business,” he said.
“It was not for her to undermine the business that he was undertaking, at the time of his death, to the loss of his beneficiaries.”
Simon Ower, for Mrs Dallas, said the case “fundamentally” misunderstood both Australian and Islamic law by asking for an award of damage beyond the court’s power.
“Our position is that we have been subjected to a roving condition of inquiry for the past five years ... this claim must be dismissed, it’s simply not able to be made out,” he said.
“There have been very serious, verging on scandalous, allegations made against my client with not a skerrick of material put forward in support of them.”
Justice Sam Doyle will hear evidence from Ms Amelia on Wednesday.
WHO ARE THE BRA BOYS?
Founded in the 1990s, the Bra Boys are a surf gang based in Maroubra, an eastern suburb of Sydney.
It is both famous for its community activism, and infamous for its alleged links to violent crime, and members are usually tattooed with the phrase “My Brother’s Keeper”.
Prominent members include rugby league players Reni Maitua, John Sutton, Bondi Lifeguard Jesse Polock, and the Abberton brothers — Sunny, Jai, Dakota, and Koby.
Some members were involved in the 2005 Cronulla race riots, later holding a joint media “peace conference” with Lebanese members of the Commancheros bikie gang.
A 2007 documentary, Bra Boys: Blood is Thicker Than Water, was written and directed by gang members and narrated by actor Russell Crowe
In 2011, a Home and Away storyline focused on the “River Boys” gang, which was heavily based on the Bra Boys.
Last year, Koby Abberton claimed the gang had 300 members who did not hold anti-Islamic nor racist views.