Classic car aficionado Chris Marco charged with massive fraud
Chris Marco, who amassed one of Australia’s best collections of homegrown muscle cars - including a $1m-plus Ford GT-HO - has been charged with fraud over $36.5m in missing funds.
Chris Marco, once the owner of what was the most expensive Ford GT-HO ever sold in Australia, has been charged with 50 counts of fraud over $36.5m in missing funds.
Mr Marco’s Perth-based management investment scheme, run through his company AMS Holdings WA, was placed in the hands of liquidators back in December 2020, with more than 130 investors suspected of being owed funds at the time.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission said on Wednesday that the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions had now charged Mr Marco with 50 counts of fraud over the operation of the scheme.
“Following an ASIC investigation, it is alleged that between July 2013 and October 2018, Mr Marco defrauded $36.5m from nine investors,’’ ASIC said in a statement.
“It is also alleged, of the $36.5m, one investor was defrauded $10m by investing with Mr Marco.
“The criminal charges come after ASIC took civil action in the Federal Court in 2020 to wind up the unregistered managed investment scheme operated by Mr Chris Marco and AMS Holdings (WA) Pty Ltd, the AMS Holdings Trust.’’
The maximum penalty for each offence of fraud under the Criminal Code WA is seven years’ imprisonment, or 10 years if the person deceived is 60 years or older.
Mr Marco has previously been permanently restrained from carrying on a financial services business or operating an unregistered managed investment scheme.
When Mr Marco’s scheme was wound up in 2020, it emerged that he was the owner of one of the pre-eminent collections of Australian-made muscle cars in the nation.
These included a 1971 Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III, a 1971 Holden Monaro GTS HQ Coupe, and a 1972 Chrysler Charger VH E49.
In all, Mr Marco had nine cars which were stored in a custom-built warehouse in Perth, which were later put up for auction by Slattery’s.
The Falcon GT-HO, which was described as being in better-than-new condition by Slattery Auctions asset manager Steve Waterman at the time, was eventually bought by philanthropist and art collector Judith Neilson, who paid $1.15m for the vehicle.
At the time this was a record sale price for an Australian-made vehicle, however it has since been surpassed by the almost $2m reportedly paid for a 1972 Ford XA GT-HO Phase IV late last year.
Ms Neilson told The Australian last year that she saw the car on the television news, and it fit with her desire to acquire a peace of Australian contemporary artwork.
The car has just 17,340km on the odometer, and now that it is safely housed at Ms Neilson’s Dangrove art space in the Sydney suburb of Alexandria, is unlikely to increase that number any time soon.
Mr Marco is scheduled to appear in the Perth Magistrates Court on Friday, July 22.
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