Adem Cengiz pleads guilty to blackmailing CEO of ASX listed company Avada for $500k
A disgraced construction boss claimed he was mates with underworld figures Mick Gatto and John Khoury while blackmailing the boss of an ASX-listed company.
Bendigo
Don't miss out on the headlines from Bendigo. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A disgraced construction boss who claims he is mates with Mick Gatto tried to blackmail an ASX listed company chief executive who claims he was the victim of “Hells Angel bikie bashing” at a boozy function.
Father of two Adem Cengiz, 44, was convicted and sentenced to an 18 month community correction order at the County Court on Monday after pleading guilty to blackmail.
Cengiz was the lead project manager of the Gold Linq light rail project on the Gold Coast in the early 2010s and was a senior player at Yarra Trams until 2019 when he went to work as a senior director of construction company Bild Group on a $400,000 salary, the court heard.
In October 2022, Cengiz demanded that Daniel Crowley, chief executive of ASX listed company Avada pay him $500,000 after claiming he had been assaulted at a work function by underworld-linked thugs.
On October 29 Cengiz attended a work function hosted by Construct Traffic at Flemington Racecourse for staff, clients and contractors after they had been acquired by Avada for about $35m.
Bild Group was a major client of Construct Traffic and Cengiz attended as his company’s representative where he “inappropriately touched and made comments to females”.
After the function the group went to the Trombar bar in Ascot Vale, where Cengiz continued to inappropriately touch women and drink heavily before he was asked to leave by two Construct Traffic employees.
A “scuffle” ensued, ending with Cengiz being escorted outside while he swore and pointed his fingers in the shape of a gun and declared he was “coming back to shoot them”, telling them they “did not know who he knew”.
Cengiz then contacted the chief executive of Avada, sending several photos of his bruised and cut face alleging Mr Bassi had organised for “two boys from Construct Traffic who were bikies with the Hells Angels, who had tattoos on their faces” to “beat him up”.
CCTV from the bar contradicted this claim, and it was never factually established how Cengiz’s face became bruised.
In a phone call recorded by police, Cengiz demanded Mr Crowley pay him $500,000 for his silence in the next 24 hours.
Cengiz threatened to tell the media Construct Traffic was associated with bikies and “blackball” Construct Traffic with other companies in the industry.
Cengiz claimed underworld figures had been in contact with him over the alleged bashing by Construct Traffic employees allegedly linked to the Hells Angels.
He told Mr Crowley that Mick Gatto and John Khoury were his “senior management” and Mr Khoury was “actually a family friend of his”.
Mr Gatto told the Herald Sun who has “no association” with Cengiz and he doesn’t know “the clown”.
He also told Mr Crowley he was going to call Eddie McGuire, the host of the Melbourne Cup, and “tell him what happened”.
Cengiz was sacked from Bild Group shortly after he was charged with blackmail.
He has since bought the Brewhouse Cafe on Hargreaves St in Bendigo’s CBD.
Cengiz claimed the only reason that he pleaded guilty was because he could not afford legal fees for a trial.
Judge Gabriele Cannon said if had not pleaded guilty he would have been jailed for three years with a non-parole period of 18-months.
Mass charges laid after cross-border outlaw bikie blitz
A man who allegedly hid a shotgun in a didgeridoo is one of many who were arrested in a cross-border blitz targeting outlaw bikie gangs and organised criminals.
Hundreds of local footy clubs take a stand against violence
Clubs and players from across the state will come together to say no to violence on and off the field and support a foundation started after a footy player died from a coward punch nine years ago. More here.