The inside story of former AFL umpire Troy Pannell, on the run over alleged multimillion-dollar fraud

From race horses and Instagram-worthy cafes to luxury homes, a former AFL umpire’s secret life has been exposed as the alleged conman dodges authorities over multimillion-dollar fraud.

The routine email that exposed a former AFL umpire accused of masterminding an $8.7 million fraud lobbed on a Wednesday morning in July last year.

“Dear Supplier … We are in the process of conducting a compliance review of our suppliers,” the email from SeaRoad Shipping finance manager Kelly Wainwright said.

“We note that your ABN is not currently registered for GST. We also note that your invoices include GST. Can you please assist us with an explanation for the above.”

For Troy Pannell, who is now on the run in breach of an arrest warrant issued by a Supreme Court judge on Tuesday, it was the beginning of the unravelling of the secret life of an alleged conman.

Troy Pannell is now on the run in breach of an arrest warrant issued by a Supreme Court judge. Picture: Michael Klein

Through a simple but ingenious invoicing system involving a fake company he had established that purported to ­repair damaged shipping containers, Mr Pannell – an AFL whistleblower by weekend and senior manager at SeaRoad Shipping in Port Melbourne by day – allegedly defrauded his employer of $100,000 a month for more than a decade without detection.

Within days of the email, stunned SeaRoad Shipping executives discovered that Mr Pannell was in fact “the sole ­director and shareholder” of the non-descript supplier, Independent Container Surveyors & Assessors (ICSA).

“WTF,” a shocked Ms Wainwright wrote to a colleague on August 9 last year.

As a controversial umpire across 219 AFL matches between 2005 and 2018, Mr Pannell had already aroused suspicions.

AFL umpire Troy Pannell.

In an infamous match between the Western Bulldogs and Adelaide in 2016, he paid a staggering 17 free kicks to the Dogs and just one to the Crows, prompting club great Mark Riccuito to this week call on the league to revisit his performances.

The AFL has refused to respond to questions about whether it had opened an investigation following the revelations in court this week.

Victoria Police confirmed on Friday that it had not received a referral from the AFL to investigate the match.

Associates of Mr Pannell have painted a picture of a complex man who had invested heavily in race horses and two Instagram-worthy cafes, despite an annual income of $109,000 per year at SeaRoad.

When SeaRoad chiefs closed in on Mr Pannell last year, he dodged demands for an explanation.

SeaRoad chief Patrick Guarino was frantically calling Mr Pannell on Tuesday, August 6 last year.

His first call was at 8.55am, then again at 9.16am and a third time at 11.23am.

He followed up with a text: “Troy you need to give me a call today. Thanks Pat.”

Troy Pannell is taken off the ground after he collided with a player in 2014.

This went on for a total of 15 unanswered calls over three days, with Mr Pannell claiming in a text message he had not answered the phone because he was picking up his daughter from daycare.

In exasperation, Mr Guarino texted Mr Pannell saying: “Your phone refused to accept calls. This also needs to be addressed. Pat.”

Mr Pannell responded saying: “Noted Pat, I’ll have this all to you as per your instructions. My phone is accepting calls, just my message bank is full and I have to delete several voice messages I received when my mother passed away last month, which I have not attended to”.

Mr Guarino replied: “Troy I have tried to call you on dozens of times with no luck. I cannot do this via text. This is a very serious matter and to communicate via text is inappropriate. I need to write to you and to do that I need your email address. This is my third attempt to obtain your email address. Please provide ASAP. Pat.”

At 7.36pm on Thursday 8 August 2024, Mr Pannell responded: “Pat I’m aware it’s serious. [e-mail].”

The next day, between 7.07am and 7.09am there was a bulk deletion of 808 files that were in the recycle bin of Mr Pannell’s work laptop, a forensic audit revealed.

SeaRoad immediately called in the lawyers, who filed a writ in the Supreme Court on January 13 this year demanding Mr Pannell pay back $8.7 million.

Mr Pannell kept up appearances despite the walls closing in.

He was seen in recent weeks at Western Region Football League umpire training, although sources say that he was considering stepping down from his coaching role because his father was ill.

Troy Pannell, right, promoting a Father’s Day special at his cafe Common Galaxia.

The Instagram-worthy meals served at Common Galaxia.

Then he disappeared, with the court this week putting out an arrest warrant and flagging his passport in case he tried to flee offshore.

No-one seems to know where he is. Friends and former colleagues are going back through their conversations with him, wondering if what he said was always true.

SeaRoad Shipping accused Mr Pannell in court of lying about the scam.

His wife Lynise Woodgate went further, calling him a liar and a cheat.

She was also named as a defendant in the case but denies all knowledge of the multimillion dollar fraud.

Ms Woodgate said Mr Pannell had access to her email address to explain why some may have been sent under her name.

“I am totally shocked by the contents of what has been provided to me via the emails,” Ms Woodgate wrote to SeaRoad’s lawyer Chris Egan of HWL Ebsworth in December last year.

“Mr Troy Pannell and I have been separated since early 2021. I am a single parent raising my daughter without any support from Mr Pannell … while trying to keep the two cafes that I operate afloat.”

A home in Melbourne’s outer west owned by former AFL umpire Troy Pannell.

SeaRoad’s lawyers have listed those cafes, Common Galaxia in Seddon, in Melbourne’s inner west, and Duck Duck Goose and Larder in Kyneton, as assets they want to seize.

However, the Kyneton cafe is now permanently closed and Common Galaxia was shut at midday on Friday, with staff told they lost their jobs last week.

Ms Woodgate also provided extensive details about their personal life.

“I discovered in January 2018 Mr Pannell was renting a house with a female in Ascot Vale,” she said.

“Mr Pannell was spending half of his time there, and the other half at our family property.

“I confronted Mr Pannell and he begged for forgiveness and I was told it was a mistake and

he wanted to salvage our family.”

A few months later, they bought Common Galaxia, which they agreed they would run as a couple.

“Mr Pannell assured me his relationship with the third party had ended, apparently it

continued because they had a daughter together in late August 2019, all while he was

‘working on’ our relationship,” she wrote to SeaRoad’s lawyers.

It was not the first time that Mr Pannell had been accused of being a cheat.

Cafe, Duck Duck Goose and Larder in Kyneton is now closed.

The Facebook page “Women burnt by Troy Pannell” was set up in April 2016 – just a few weeks before that Bulldogs and Adelaide game.

“Troy Pannell cheats on his wife while being on various dating sites claiming to be single,” the page, which is still visible, claimed.

“The AFL and AFLUA are aware of his disgusting treatment of women but instead of dealing with it they put him on a pedestal and make him President even though they are so public about their harassment and discrimination, etc. policies.

Shame on you AFL!”

Mr Pannell has also had a mixed reputation in umpiring circles.

It’s alleged he once “shit in the bed” of a fellow umpire when they were away on a trip.

“He came home before him, did the shit and then pulled the sheets over,” a source claimed.

Ms Woodgate declined to comment when approached at her home this week.

She claims that she borrowed $320,000 from her parents to buy the Duck Duck Goose and Larder, while Common Galaxia was financed out of borrowing against the mortgage she shared with Mr Pannell.

Troy Pannell had insured racehorses for more than $1 million.

There’s no visible evidence of what Mr Pannell may have spent the $8.7 million that SeaRoad alleged he took on.

Mr Pannell did engage lawyers briefly before his disappearance.

John Maplestone of TM Collins responded to SeaRoad’s lawyers on August 23 last year, a couple of weeks after those 808 files were deleted from the recycle bin on Mr Pannell’s laptop.

“Our client was in fact surprised when he was notified by your client’s chief operating officer that he is still listed as a director and shareholder of ICSA,” Mr Maplestone wrote, referring to the company at the centre of the scam.

He claimed that Mr Pannell sold the company for $280,000 to a man called Martin Fortune in March 2011.

Mr Fortune died in the middle of last year, according to evidence presented to court, which means he cannot be questioned.

SeaRoad’s lawyers also, at this stage, cannot question Mr Pannell either.

Sources close to the shipping company say they are stunned at the scale of the alleged scam, comparing him to US fraudster Frank Abagnale Jr.

“It’s like he’s Leonardo Di Caprio in that movie Catch Me If You Can,” a source said.

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