Add Category
In 2016 Caddick used stolen funds for the deposit to secure the Edgecliff property for $2.55 million. She persuaded her parents, Barb and Ted Grimley, to pay her $1 million for a one-third ownership and a life tenancy.
However, more than half her parents’ money was used by their daughter to buy a diamond ring. The rest Caddick spent on lifestyle expenses including private jets.
Melissa Caddick’s parents Barbara and Ted Grimley.Credit: James Brickwood
After a lengthy legal battle, during which the Grimleys contended that they had priority over other out-of-pocket investors, Caddick’s parents recently vacated the apartment after the receivers agreed to pay them $950,000 from their daughter’s estate.
In better news for out-of-pocket investors, the receivers expect to claw back $1.05 million from the tax office. Caddick’s personal company Maliver paid tax on fictitious income, which in reality was the proceeds of crime.
The con woman, who vanished almost three years ago, fleeced family and friends of more than $23 million by pretending to invest their money in shares. Instead, Caddick used the funds to maintain a lavish lifestyle which included the purchase of two properties.
The interior of the Edgecliff penthouse apartment that once belonged to Melissa Caddick..Credit: Kate Geraghty
Earlier this year Caddick’s Dover Heights home, purchased in 2014 for $6.2 million, was sold for $9.8 million.
Caddick disappeared in the early hours of 12 November 2020. The previous night her home was raided by the Federal Police acting on behalf of the corporate regulator, ASIC, relating to the Ponzi scheme she’d been running since 2012.
Loading
In May, a coroner found that while the fraudster is dead, the cause and manner of her death are set to remain a mystery because of her husband Anthony Koletti’s failure to provide a “frank account” of what took place in the 30 hours before he reported her missing.
The Caddick case will return to court on 13 November to deal with outstanding issues, including Koletti’s claim over watches and jewellery, as well as an assortment of high-end designer sneakers, valued at around $25,000, which were collected by Caddick’s teenage son.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.