Melissa Caddick’s parents to move out of $2.5m Sydney penthouse

The long-running legal battle over the ownership of fraudster Melissa Caddick’s eastern suburbs penthouse has been resolved,with her parents agreeing to vacate the property in return for receiving almost $1 million.

Apart from an ongoing dispute with Caddick’s husband Anthony Koletti over several items of jewellery,the impending sale of the Edgecliff property will bring to a close the complicated unravelling of Caddick’s affairs.

The last photos of Melissa Caddick were taken on November 11,2020,during the raid on her house by the corporate regulator.

The last photos of Melissa Caddick were taken on November 11,2020,during the raid on her house by the corporate regulator.Supplied

Since she vanished in November 2020,55 family and friends discovered Caddick had stolen $23.5 million from them,pretending she was investing in shares on their behalf. Instead,Caddick was using their money to maintain an extraordinarily lavish lifestyle.

The day before,the 49-year-old conwoman was raided by the corporate regulator over the Ponzi scheme she had been running for eight years.

After her disappearance,the Federal Court appointed Bruce Gleeson and Daniel Soire from Jones Partners to investigate the financial affairs of Caddick and her company Maliver.

For the past two years,the receivers have been selling off Caddick’s jewellery,cars,clothes,artwork and her Dover Heights house.

Anthony Koletti,husband of Sydney fraudster Melissa Caddick,pictured on his LinkedIn profile.

Anthony Koletti,husband of Sydney fraudster Melissa Caddick,pictured on his LinkedIn profile.Supplied

Koletti,a hairdresser and part-time DJ,initially wanted millions of dollars from his wife’s proceeds of crime,including her Gucci wedding dress,$7 million in shares,$2 million worth of jewellery,two properties he suggested were valued at $20 million as well as the proceeds from the sale of their luxury cars.

He is now battling over cufflinks and rings,estimated to be worth around $20,000.

The Edgecliff apartment that Caddick bought in 2016 for $2.55 million is the only remaining asset to be sold.

She persuaded her parents to pay $1 million for a third ownership and a life tenancy. However,rather than paying down the mortgage,their daughter spent the money of her parents Barb and Ted Grimley on jewellery and jets.

Melissa Caddick’s husband Anthony Koletti and mother Barbara Grimley arrive at the NSW Coroners Court.

Melissa Caddick’s husband Anthony Koletti and mother Barbara Grimley arrive at the NSW Coroners Court.Kate Geraghty

On Monday afternoon Federal Court Justice Brigitte Markovic approved the agreement the receivers reached with the Grimleys,who will remove the caveats on the title once they receive $950,000. Caddick did not pay off any of the principal and there is still a large mortgage that hasn’t been paid since her disappearance.

The couple,in their late 80s,has agreed to vacate the three-bedroom apartment within six weeks,clearing the way for the receivers to organise a spring auction campaign.

The court also approved an interim distribution of $3 million among the out-of-pocket investors who may eventually get back between 36 and 37 cents in the dollar.

Caddick’s badly decomposed right foot washed up on a remote South Coast beach three months after she went missing. A coronial inquiry recently determined that Caddick was dead,however,the cause and manner of her death could not be determined.

Koletti was described as a “most unimpressive and unreliable witness” whose lack of candour and 30 hour-delay in reporting his wife’s disappearance made it impossible to determine how his wife died.

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Kate McClymont is chief investigative reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.

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