Pair face court probe on car-wash liquidations

Two liquidators will be investigated over their dealings with companies associ­ated with car-wash king Anthony ­Sahade.

Crystal Car Wash owner Anthony Sahade.

Two prominent Sydney liquidators will be investigated by a court and could face bans over their dealings with companies associ­ated with car-wash king and Point Piper millionaire Anthony ­Sahade.

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has requested the NSW Supreme Court investigate Andrew Wily and David Hurst over their handling of liquidations of 12 companies tied to Mr Sahade’s Crystal Carwash, alleging they failed to undertake “basic investigations” or report suspected illegal “phoenix” activity. The banned practice involves stripping assets from a failed company and putting them into a new corporate entity.

ASIC alleges the men — who worked for firm Armstrong Wily at the time of the alleged wrongdoing — had a lack of independence, failed to disclose potential conflicts and failed to report to the regulator the presence of suspected “shadow directors” associated with the 12 companies.

“ASIC seeks orders that Mr Wily and Mr Hurst be prohibited from practising as registered liquidators for such period as the court sees fit,” the regulator said yesterday.

In a statement yesterday, Mr Wily said he would defend the allegations “vigorously” but would not comment further because the matter was before the courts.

Mr Hurst, who is now a director of insolvency firm HoskingHurst, was unavailable for comment.

Records show the 12 companies were placed in liquidation owing a total of $689,870 to creditors, and each had between 12 and 102 creditors. Company searches show each of the 12 companies previously had listed its address as that of Oliveri Legal, the Darlinghurst law firm of lawyer Emanueli Oliveri.

Mr Oliveri has acted as Mr Sahade’s lawyer previously, including successfully defending the car- wash entrepreneur from assault charges after he allegedly threw rocks at an arborist removing a tree from a property next door to his exclusive home in Point Piper, the nation’s richest suburb.

Neither Mr Oliveri nor Mr Sahade responded to requests for comment yesterday.

Late last year, Mr Sahade was reported to be shopping around his Crystal Carwash chain through real estate firm CBRE, asking about $400 million for its portfolio of 15 premises across Sydney.

The businessman’s bitter disputes with neighbours — which included an elderly neighbour taking out an apprehended violence order against Mr Sahade after he allegedly pushed her into a swimming pool — have repeatedly made headlines in recent years.

Last month Mr Sahade reportedly bought two properties from neighbours with whom he had been feuding, Carina Gilster and Eckhart and Celia Bischoff, for about $27m. The properties were reportedly bought in the name of Mr Sahade’s wife, Rita.

ASIC said the 12 companies over which Mr Wily and Mr Hurst were appointed voluntary liquidators supplied either administrative, car-wash or cafe staff exclusively to Crystal Carwash Cafe, generally known as Crystal Carwash.

Previously, Mr Wily had also conducted the liquidation of seven other companies that had provided support to Crystal Carwash.

The matter has been listed for a directions hearing on February 9.

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