Melbourne fraudsters: the scoundrels and con artists who got locked up in 2019
Their elaborate frauds pulled in Hollywood celebrities, Bathurst champions and hardworking business owners — and these Melbourne scoundrels and con artists all had one other thing in common. They weren’t quite smart enough to go the distance.
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Live by the sword, die by the sword came true for several Melbourne scoundrels and conmen whose elaborate frauds webbed in Hollywood celebrities, Bathurst champions and hardworking business owners.
Leader picked some of the worst to go through the courts in the past year including a fallen socialite and an international conman/Hungarian spy.
CONNIE THE CON QUEEN
Connie Paglianiti wanted it all — fame, Hollywood A-listers, riches — and she didn’t mind spending big to make it happen.
There was only one problem … it wasn’t her money.
Paglianiti spent huge sums flying in Oscar-winning actors Susan Sarandon and Sophia Loren to appear at her La Dolce Italia charity gala dinners.
She was desperate to save her crumbling Eventcepts business so she swindled $6,320,230 from Eastern Ocean, a homewares and gifts import firm run by a friend.
Paglianiti was its part-time bookkeeper when she made 100 dodgy transactions, masked as ATO payments, between February 2014 and September 2018.
The money went into her bank account and into her Carlton-based company’s account.
As her business losses grew, Paglianiti turned to gambling “four to five” nights a week at Crown, where she lost $1.5 million of the stolen cash.
Paglianiti, from Brunswick East, pleaded guilty at the County Court last November to nine counts of theft.
She was later jailed for a maximum four years, with a minimum two years and six months.
FINGER LICKIN’ CROOK: THE SHONKY KFC BOSS
Shonky KFC manager Gayan Amerasekera swindled almost $500,000 to fund an “extravagant” lifestyle of high stakes gambling, fine-dining restaurants, drugs and prostitutes.
Amerasekera was the area manager and bookkeeper for a company which operates KFC outlets at Knox City, Knox Ozone and Bayswater.
Amerasekera used his “full access” to the company’s accounts to transfer $484,147.58 into his own bank account.
The shonky accountant made 151 bogus transactions between January 2016 and November 2018.
He admitted the stolen cash was to fund a high stakes gambling addiction which landed him neck deep in the Crown Casino high-roller rooms.
Amerasekera gambled away big money on a daily basis.
Crown would comp him hotel rooms which Amerasekera used to do meth so he could “recharge for another tilt at the tables”.
He also splashed cash on prostitutes, alcohol and fine-dining restaurants including Nobu and Bistro Guillaume.
Amerasekera was sentenced at the County Court last November to a maximum three years’ prison with a non-parole period of 22 months.
He will be deported to Sri Lanka when released.
THE FRAUDSTER ESTATE AGENT
Bogus real estate agent Craig McIntosh stole big cash deposits for properties that weren’t for sale so he could buy Tattslotto tickets.
McIntosh stole more than $200,000 from 12 victims through shonky property deals between July, 2016 and August, 2017.
The dodgy agent’s victims were in the market to purchase property in the city and Southbank.
McIntosh had been an authorised real estate agent’s representative but this was stripped in February 2017.
His various lies included a regular fib that he couldn’t access the deposits because his account was “overseas”.
In reality he had quickly withdrawn the cash from his Bank of Queensland business account then spent it on hotel rooms and Tattslotto tickets
McIntosh’s scam began to unravel when he was approached by a customer interested in buying a Swanston St property
Police arrested McIntosh at his high-rise Russell St suite in February, 2018.
McIntosh was sentenced at the County Court last December to two years’ jail with a minimum of one year after pleading guilty to multiple charges of theft and obtaining property by deception.
DODGY DOUBLE-DEALING DAD
IT manager and doting dad Patrick Kashani sold embezzled mobile phones and tablets on eBay in a scheme to steal from his rich employer, pass funds on to his slightly poorer staff — and feed his $1000-a-week lotto ticket addiction.
Kashani used his position as the former Prixcar Services national manger to place bogus orders with Telstra for 59 mobile phones and tablets.
Kashani sold the devices — worth $116,256.56 — on eBay for $65,000.
He also ordered 320 Motorola scanning devices which he initially failed to sell on eBay and at a garage sale.
He enlisted a colleague who eventually sold the scanners on eBay for $6900.
Kashani gave the colleague some of the money as a wedding present.
He also spent some of it on lunch and dinner for his staff.
Kashani’s “unsophisticated” scheme, which ran between February, 2016 and June, 2017, was “clearly” traced back to him, albeit several months after he was retrenched.
Kashani made full admissions to police but attempted to justify his crimes.
Kashani was sentenced at the County Court last October to a two-year community corrections order after pleading guilty to two charges of theft.
The court heard Kashani had experienced “very considerable” financial and personal stress.
It was also tendered Kashani was spending “extreme amounts” on lottery tickets — approximately $1000 per week.
The western suburbs father also claimed he was under pressure to meet mortgage repayments but had not told his wife.
THE HUNGARIAN SPY AND THE BATHURST CHAMP
International conman and former Hungarian secret agent Zsolt Kenyeres infiltrated the Australian motor racing industry, dragging a five-time Bathurst champion into his twisted world of lies and scandals.
Kenyeres — known in motorsport circles as George Kenyeres — backed Bathurst champ Steve Richards and employed top driver Alex Davison to race for him.
Kenyeres used his shonky company, President Limo Australia, to back both drivers during the 2017 Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Championship.
Kenyeres also financially backed Richards in the 2017 Australian GT Championships.
However, the Black Rock motor enthusiast left both men high and dry — he owes Richards $100,000 and Davison $40,000 — before disappearing.
Davison nor Richards had any clue the man they dealt with was a conman wanted for embezzlement in Hungary.
The money Kenyeres used to fund his motorsport jaunt came from more than $1.6 million he ripped off Melbourne businessmen.
He convinced his victims to hand over large amounts of cash for a dodgy car part import scheme and exclusive rights to purchase limited edition Porsches.
All the transactions were bogus and none of the victims got their money back.
The con ran from October, 2016 until March, 2018 when Hungary put in an extradition request for Kenyeres over outstanding fraud charges.
Kenyeres was sentenced at the County Court last August to a maximum seven years and six months in jail with a minimum of five years after pleading guilty to several counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception.
The extradition proceedings have been postponed until he completes his sentence.
THE JETSETTING ACCOUNTANT
Jetsetting accountant Mina Saad has a penchant for high-stakes gambling, top-shelf drugs, fast cars and exotic travel locations but only if he spends other people’s money.
Saad had been employed as the Polivac International Pty Ltd accountant for barely a month when he began diverting company funds to his own bank account in September, 2015.
The Latrobe University accountancy graduate stole $256,000 via 43 fraudulent transactions.
These transferrals included money fleeced from a second company connected to Polivac located at the Kensington site.
Saad stopped stealing from both companies in October, 2016 but remained employed with Polivac until December that year.
His deceit was eventually uncovered by Polivac’s new accountant in March, 2017.
Saad said after his arrest he stole the money because he had been going through a tough time with his ex, he’d fallen in with the wrong crowd and got into drugs and gambling.
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He said $115,000 was blown at Crown Casino and much of the rest went on cocaine and meth.
However, photos tendered at court showed Saad living it up in Dubai and Thailand during the offending.
Saad was sentenced at the County Court last September to 12 months’ jail and a 30-month community correction order after pleading guilty to two charges of theft.