Cowboy conman allegedly sold horses he didn’t own, fleecing victims out of $1.77m

A notorious conman accused of animal cruelty is being probed over claims he sold horses that didn’t belong to him, duping their owners out of almost $1.8m. WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES

ITammy Topham and Deb Peeters allege Michael Costello has fleeced them out of money. Picture: David Caird

A notorious conman is being investigated by police after claims he ripped off animal lovers of almost $1.8m.

Michael Francis Costello is accused of selling horses that did not belong to him, selling horses to multiple people at the same time and duping people into buying non-existent animals.

The 72-year-old, who operates out of MFC Equine and MFC Performance Horses in Koo Wee Rup, has allegedly scammed at least 51 people out of $1.77m.

Mr Costello is also accused of animal cruelty, taking money for feed and training he did not provide, and fleecing victims of cash he claimed was for business deals.

Some alleged victims have told the Saturday Herald Sun their horses were so badly neglected they had to be put down.

Others have frantically grabbed their horses from the properties when Mr Costello was not there, after allegedly discovering squalid and dangerous conditions or that Mr Costello was trying to sell their animal without their permission.

When alleged victims chase the money they are owed, they are threatened with violence and vexatious legal action, they claim.

Michael Francis Costello is accused of selling horses that did not belong to him and duping people into buying non-existent animals.

Mr Costello has also allegedly phoned the Department of Health and Human Services to falsely claim one of his victims was abusing their child and threatened to make complaints to people’s workplaces if they continued to ask for their money back.

The Saturday Herald Sun has spoken to several people who have made consistent accusations regarding Mr Costello’s conduct, who is known locally as the ‘cowboy conman.’

Tammy Topham, 44, from Koo Wee Rup, bought horse Storm from Mr Costello for $7000 in July 2021.

“He said he bred her father, he was an award-winning horse and that Storm was just like him and was the perfect horse,” Tammy said.

“But months later I was contacted by a woman who had seen Storm as my Facebook profile picture. Storm had distinctive face markings and she said that was her horse.

“She had bought a pregnant rescue horse from Echuca Sales and Storm was her offspring. She had the paperwork and It was only then I realised Mike had made up the registration papers and falsified documents.”

Before she realised this, she also bought a “champion show horse” called Seven from Mr Costello for $9500, which she later found belonged to another woman and paid $25,000 for four foals in a business deal.

Tammy Topham and Deb Peeters claim they have been fleeced by Mr Costello. Picture: David Caird

“Mike made it sound so easy – we buy the foals, train them up over 18-months and double our money,” Tammy said.

“I later found out Mike sold the same four foals to two other people,” she said.

Tammy also bought a horse called Buddy for $3250 in September 2021, which never arrived and paid $9100 for a horse called Lady Casey in October 2021, with the plan of selling her embryos for $20,000 each.

“I was told she had two foals but after months of asking questions I was told one of the embryos didn’t take and the other foal had died.”

Deb Peeters, 53, from Koo Wee Rup, says she has been robbed of her life savings of $85,000 and is now living in poverty. She bought 10 horses from Mr Costello, ranging from $1500 for Purple In Purple to $17,600 for Jessie. She later found seven of the horses were owned by other people and Mr Costello did not have any right to sell them.

Deb says she has a solicitor’s ‘deed of settlement’ letter sent on behalf of Mr Costello that agrees to repay her money, once the horses are sold.

“But they are not his to sell, he doesn’t even have them, so it’s just another game to keep me waiting for my money and I won’t sign it. He has threatened me, he has intimidated me – I just want my money back,” she said

One woman, who died recently, shared that she was scammed out of $120,000 by Mr Costello.

Horses who were allegedly injured and neglected in Mr Costello’s care.

Jake Dempsey, from Warragul, bought Wilbur for $2000 and worked for Mr Costello to pay for its upkeep.

“Quite often I would turn up and the horses wouldn’t have food or water. Another time I turned up on a 40 degree day and Wilbur had a heavy rug on him,” he said.

“The horses were clearly starving and I made several reports to the RSPCA but they didn’t do anything.”

He added: “In March, I rocked up and Wilbur was impaled on some metal that had been left in the paddock. There was rubbish and sh-t left all over the place all the time. That’s when I got a float and got him out of there. But Wilbur had to be put down about two months ago because of it – he couldn’t walk.”

Libby Carter had leased her horse Teddy to Mr Costello in October 2022.

Mr Costello then sold Teddy without Libby’s permission to Deb Peeters.

“Mike told Deb I needed to sell him due to Covid and was after a quick sale – Deb could buy him for $4000 but he was worth $15,000,” Libby said.

Mr Costello is accused of animal cruelty.

“While Teddy was with Mike, he was so badly neglected. He got an infection in his hoof, he developed hair loss on his back from having a warm rug on him on hot days and he got mud fever, a fungal infection on his legs.

“It got so bad I had to rescue him from the property while Mike was away.”

Lily Muratore worked for Mr Costello from the age of 17 for two and a half years. She claims she is owed thousands of dollars in unpaid wages.

She says she saw water and feed being removed from stables for days on end, cruel training methods including heads being tied to their chest, and horses being tied up for days in “ridiculous heat and cold.”

But the final straw was when a horse called Catani was discovered caught up in barbed wire, with it cutting deep into her leg.

“Mike wouldn’t come to help, I had to cut her free. Then he refused to get a vet. The wound was making me violently sick. It was so bad. I couldn’t cope with the pain she was clearly in. When the vet was finally called, they said she had to put down. Mike phoned the knackery and she was shot on the spot. It should never have happened like that.”

A horse allegedly injured in Mr Costello’s care.

Rubbish in a paddock where horses were allegedly kept.

Amanda Mason helped Mr Costello set up Ellet Park Agistment in Pakenham in 2017. The partnership only lasted a year after witnessing how he treated horses in his care.

“Horses were being injured and not seeing a vet, he wasn’t training horses, he was feeding them black mouldy hay, some weren’t being fed at all, horses were tied to rails all day and night – it was mortifying.”

She added: “But as soon as I tried to take my farm back from him, he turned on me.

“He threatened me and my kids, he told the government I was being discriminatory and got them to investigate me, he bullied and spat on me and told me he was going to ruin me and my family. I was slipping into a really dark place with it all.

“He is dangerous and deceitful and needs to be stopped.”

Clare Williams, 46, from Berwick, sent her horse Luna to be trained by Mr Costello at the Pakenham facility in 2018.

“I turned up once to find her tied down with her nose touching her chest. She had been left like that for hours.

“Another time Luna had blood dripping from both front legs and her mouth. He had run my horse into a fence and ripped her so badly she was bleeding.

“I was screaming at him and he just said: ‘Turn your love meter down’.”

She added: “After I rescued her from him, all these people – including professional people in the industry – came out and told me their hellish story.

“One said ‘I heard you’ve been Michaeled.’ He said he hadn’t said anything to me prior because Mike would ruin his business.”

Mr Costello is no stranger to the law.

In the 1980s he was allegedly involved in an international gang’s offshore loan scam. He was charged with conspiracy to pervert the course of justice in 1990 but released on a good behaviour bond for three years.

From 1994 to 1997 he was declared bankrupt.

Then in 2006, he was charged with theft. Again, he was released on a good behaviour bond, without conviction, this time for one year.

In 2010 he was charged with two counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception, ripping off a butcher of $91,400. He pleaded guilty to one charge and was sentenced the following year to 12-months home detention.

Judge Mark Dean, in his sentencing remarks, stated: “I have concluded that it is most unlikely that you will reoffend and accordingly your prospects for rehabilitation must be regarded as good.”

Mr Costello declared himself bankrupt in 2011 after racking up a $70,000 bill on another person’s American Express card and failing to pay them back. The Saturday Herald Sun understands Mr Costello is still listed as bankrupt because he has not completed the relevant forms. This means he cannot own or run a company, but makes it harder for creditors to take legal action against him.

An animal allegedly found on Mr Costello’s property.

Conditions at Mr Costello’s property.

The Saturday Herald Sun also understands he has not paid back the $91,400 he stole, which was ordered by the court.

MFC Performance Horses is in Christine Vano’s name – his daughter – while MFC Equine is in the name of longtime friend Christina Brands, who also lives on the property.

Ms Vano and Ms Brands are not involved in any of the conduct Mr Costello has been accused of.

MFC stands for Michael Francis Costello and his picture, name and mobile is plastered all over their websites.

Victoria Police confirmed it was investigating Mr Costello.

Mr Costello told the Saturday Herald Sun people were “just jumping on the bandwagon” of hating him.

“No one has ever asked me for money, not through lawyers or any official channels,” he said.

Tammy Topham and Deb Peeters and other investors who allege they have been robbed by the cowboy conman. Picture: David Caird

Michael Peter Costello declared himself bankrupt in 2011.

“I’m not denying I owe people money. I’ve made arrangements to repay two people. I’m not dishonest. But they’ve breached the contract by saying terrible things about me. It’s out of control, it’s all an exaggeration.”

He added: “Everyone is just jumping on the bandwagon. If I’m in the wrong, I’ll pay it back. But most of these people, I don’t even know them.

“They’ve threatened me but I’m not hiding from anyone. I’m the victim now because it’s gone on so long. This is my truth.”

He also vehemently denied ever hurting an animal.

“I would never neglect, hurt or mistreat a horse. I love animals. That’s really hurtful to me,” he said.

A spokesman for the RSPCA said there were no ongoing investigations into Mr Costello.

“We have received a number of reports from the area. These reports were looked into and there are no ongoing investigations.”

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