Paul Phillippe Simonet: Thornlands man jailed for high-end vehicle fraud on the Gold Coast

A southeast Qld man was already subject to various court orders when he dishonestly obtained two high-end cars in a pair of “unsophisticated” frauds on the Gold Coast, a court has heard.

Dated photo of jailed Thornlands fraudster Paul Phillippe Simonet, now aged 40, depicted at Penrith circa 2007, when he was aged in his early 20s. Picture: NewsLocal/Tim Clapin

A Redlands man who dishonestly obtained two high-end vehicles, neither of which he paid for, has caused a knotty civil case between the dudded vendor and the dealer he on-sold the vehicle to, a court has heard.

Thornlands man Paul Phillippe Simonet, 40, appeared in Southport District Court on November 13, where he pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud, one to the value of between $30,000-$100,000, the other in excess of $100,000.

The offences occurred on the Gold Coast on various dates between June 14, 2023 and November 24, 2023.

The first swindle involved Simonet purporting to buy a Mercedes-Benz for $55,000, which he then on-sold to a dealer, Southport’s Gold Coast Prestige, for $42,000, the court heard.

The $42,000 received by Simonet was never recovered, and there now exists a thorny, ongoing civil case between the Mercedes-Benz’s original owner and the dealership over who is entitled to take possession of the impounded vehicle.

When he committed this first offence, Simonet was subject to an 18-month community corrections order imposed by the Parramatta Local Court in March 2022 for an offence of larceny.

Crown prosecutor Mathew Thompson told the court Simonet was ordered to compensate that earlier complainant $100,000 as a result of the proceeding.

Simonet’s second fraud, committed while he was on bail for the first fraud, involved him dishonestly obtaining a BMW for a purported payment of $75,000.

That car was recovered after a complaint was made, the court heard.

Simonet was subject to a NSW community corrections order when he committed the first fraud, and on bail when he committed the second fraud, the court heard. Picture: NewsWire / Richard Gosling

Simonet engaged in a number of strategies to induce delivery of the vehicles, including by creating false bank transfer screenshots and transferring small amounts to give the impression the lack of funds were a bank issue, rather than his own deception.

Defence counsel Paddy Kilmurray told the court his client, a father-of-one who was undergoing rehabilitation for an opioid addiction caused by a workplace accident in 2020, requiring multiple knee surgeries, spent 209 days in pre-sentence custody related to the current offending, as well as an additional 70 days that could not be declared.

Mr Kilmurray agreed with Mr Thompson’s assessment that the offending was “unsophisticated,” in that Simonet made no attempt to shroud his identity when making the dodgy transactions.

“He was always going to be caught,” the barrister said.

Mr Kilmurray said the offending occurred in the context of Simonet’s opioid addiction, which affected his “judgment and decision-making ability”.

Judge Amanda McDonnell sentenced Simonet to three years’ imprisonment, suspended after serving 12 months, for an operational period of three years.

Originally published as Paul Phillippe Simonet: Thornlands man jailed for high-end vehicle fraud on the Gold Coast