Wanted Sydney property developer Jean Nassif could face further criminal action over “potential fraud”, as administrators allege he sent millions of dollars to Lebanon and Nigeria before his business empire collapsed.
The report delivered two days ago by administrators DVT Group, appointed in July, sheds light on the inner workings of Toplace Pty Ltd, which is estimated to have more than $600 million in debt.
The company claims to have built about 30,000 properties across the city.
According to the report, unsecured creditors are owed about $400 million, while the company’s remaining assets are worth less than $4 million.
DVT Group’s Suelen McCallum and Antony Resnick said they had received formal demands from the Independent Commission Against Corruption, NSW Fair Trading, NSW Police and the Australian Tax Office.
“We understand NSW Police are also undertaking investigations in respect to alleged fraudulent documents relating to several construction projects undertaken by Toplace,” they said.
Mr Nassif, who is believed to be overseas, has left behind dozens of developments with defects.
Administrators said “it is likely that the Toplace Group traded while insolvent from 2020”.
They claimed he “treated company bank accounts as his exclusive personal financial resources”, including to cover the deposit for his resident in the Sydney suburb of Chiswick.
“The director’s use of company bank accounts for personal purposes raises serious issues related to his legal duties,” the report stated.
Their investigations into transactions from the beginning of 2020 to July 2023 uncovered several loans to overseas accounts.
“Our review indicates that the Toplace Group lacked sufficient policies, procedures, and internal controls to ensure that drawdowns were utilised in a manner consistent with the loan agreements and drawdown declarations,” the report outlined.
“Raising concerns about potential fraud and violation of directors’ duties.”
Land and ‘warehouse projects’
Their investigations allege in 2019 one of Mr Nassif’s companies took $10 million from the Westpac loan facility and transferred it to a Bank of Beirut account owned by Bakhos Khazen Nassif, understood to be Jean Nassif’s brother.
No repayments have been made for the transaction, labelled as a “Loan to third party Beirut”, which administrators believe is irrecoverable.
Further, in 2018 a $7 million loan from the Bank of Sydney was made to one of Mr Nassif’s companies which was then used to purchase land in Lebanon.
His company Toplace has repaid that loan.
And in 2022, Mr Nassif used $1.2 million of the company’s money for a “warehouse project” in Nigeria.
He has previously acknowledged he owes Toplace $3,255,583, but the true value, according to the report, is estimated to be $7,147,971.
The administrators have commenced proceedings to recover that money owing, which is accruing more than $1,800 in interest per day.
They claim the sole director of the company, Mr Nassif, left Australia and travelled overseas before any entities were placed into voluntary administration, and that they have “had little contact” with him.
Mr Nassif is understood to be at the centre of an ICAC investigation sparked by claims Toplace was paying Liberal Party members to install certain councillors on the Hills Shire Council.
The allegations were made by Castle Hill MP Ray Williams under parliamentary privilege last year.
Mr Nassif has denied those claims.
Police investigation ongoing
NSW Police issued a warrant for the 56-year-old’s arrest in June 2023, but at the time did not know where the property magnate was.
The warrant is in relation to alleged fraudulent sales contracts made to access a $150 million loan for the construction of three buildings in Toplace’s Skyview development at Castle Hill.
In a statement today, police said their investigation into Mr Nassif, in conjunction with international law enforcement, was ongoing.
In February 2023, Mr Nassif sent a letter to a NSW parliamentary inquiry saying he was in a “remote” area of Lebanon.
Ms McCallum and Mr Resnick understand he is still overseas.
The report said the cancellation of the company’s building licence in March 2023, because it failed to resolve serious defects across numerous apartment buildings, contributed to the company’s collapse.
The bans were imposed following an investigation by NSW Fair Trading, which alleged it had found more than 40 defects in residential developments constructed by Toplace, including the Atmosphere and Skyview projects at Castle Hill, and the Vicinity building in Canterbury.
Toplace Pty Ltd has received strata claims to the amount of $123,359,806 for properties it’s responsible for constructing.
Another factor in the company’s collapse, they said, was Westpac’s decision to close the bank accounts of Toplace Group.
DVT Group has been appointed the administrators to 57 entities related to the Toplace Group.
It is understood the broader structure comprised of 77 related or associated entities, which effectively operated as one group, and its true financial position may never be understood due to the “size, complexity and volume or operations and transactions”.
A second creditors meeting will take place on February 9, where the future of the company will be decided.