Fraudster Matthew Waij conned family out of super, spent money on Kmart and Gucci spree, strippers
A fraudster who conned his family members out of more than $2m in a shocking scam went on a spending spree - including at Kmart.
A Victorian fraudster who posed as a stock broker and financial Adviser scammed family members and friends out of more than $2.7m and splashed the cash at Kmart, Gucci and strip clubs.
Matthew Waij, also known as Matthew Way, pleaded guilty to more than a dozen charges of financial advantage by deception and other offences in the County Court of Victoria on Wednesday.
The 38-year-old also defrauded acquaintances in the scam that ran between 2006 and 2017.
One of Waij’s victims was his mother’s partner of more than 20 years, who gave an emotional statement to the court about the impact of the crime.
“The crimes committed by Matt by stealing my money and superannuation has affected me and my family in many ways,” Sidney Aspland told the court.
The couple lost their house as a result of Waij’s actions and it caused a huge strain on their relationship, he said.
He had treated Waij like a son and trusted him but now was left with nothing.
“Much to my horror at 64 years-old, I’ve been cheated out of all investment money and super,” Mr Aspland told the court.
Other victims included Waij’s uncle, aunt, a Shepparton dairy farmer and a builder who he scammed after meeting the man about getting some work done at his grandmother’s property.
The fraudster claimed he was a stockbroker and financial Adviser to 18 victims despite being unlicensed and flunking out of his commerce degree because he was underachieving, prosecutors told the court.
He convinced his victims to invest their superannuation and savings with him and told them he would use the cash to buy shares, which was a better investment.
Victims were convinced to transfer their superannuation into self-managed funds that Waij controlled and then transferred it to other bank accounts he controlled.
Several of his victims were paid off using the cash, which prosecutors described as “robbing Peter to pay Paul”.
While some of the money was used to buy shares for the victims, the amounts were “grossly deficient” compared to amounts they were told, according to the prosecution.
The shares weren’t purchased under their names however, the court heard.
Instead of investments, Waij splashed cash at a strip club in Sydney called the Men’s Gallery, more than $3705 at Gucci, as well as smaller purchases at Kmart and JB Hi-Fi.
To cover his tracks, the fraudster would send some of his victims false portfolio statements to show how their money was being spent.
Waij’s defence barrister Simon Moglia said his client did not set out to defraud others and had traded shares while working for Fortrend Securities and had also worked at Goldman Sachs.
“He did not set out in the mid-2000s with the sole intention of defrauding others of their savings,” Mr Moglia said.
Waij acknowledged he failed to adequately disclose his investment dealings and accepted he failed in his duty to act honestly and transparently, the lawyer said.
The lawyer said his client’s guilty plea represented him taking responsibility and remorse for the crimes.
He argued this should attract a “significant discount” on his sentence and there had also been a delay since he was charged.
Waij is currently serving another sentence in relation to other fraudulent conduct and will be sentenced in relation to this offending at a later date.