European Car Specialist – 180 luxury cars missing – Sydney

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$15m luxury car scam: Dealer arrested

A LUXURY car dealer has been arrested over an alleged $15 million fraud involving dozens of cars including Bentleys, Porsches, Lamborghinis and Ferraris.

Sid Khoury, who owned The European Car Specialist in Croydon until its collapse in April, was charged with 24 fraud-related offences by Burwood detectives yesterday following a seven-month investigation.

Two other men, Danny Bayeh, 35, and Najib Nehme, 32, were also charged, each on 18 counts related to fraud.

Mr Khoury, a multimillionaire and prominent member of Sydney’s Lebanese community, is alleged to have been involved in the theft of 180 cars including a $650,000 Ferrari Scaglietti.

He owned and ran the dealership for 30 years until he hit financial problems in late April and his company, Chanti, collapsed. The company was bleeding cash at a rate of $400,000 a month, heavily indebted and trading while insolvent.

Business documents show he told creditors he could not attend a meeting in May because ”my life and the lives of members of my family have recently been threatened”.

He did not name those threatening him.

The meeting also heard that on the day the liquidators took control, dozens of cars disappeared from the car yard.

Mr Khoury opened the dealership in 1979. In 2004 he doubled its size and built a new showroom.

Burwood detectives formed a strike force – ”McCar” – after receiving a series of complaints from people in Sydney, interstate and overseas who had lost their cars through the dealership.

”Police will allege dozens of car owners engaged the car yard to sell their vehicles on consignment, only to later find the lot empty,” police stated.

Mr Khoury was a large donor to the Australian Lebanese Foundation, which provides scholarships to Sydney University for young people of Lebanese heritage.

A former board member of the foundation, the property developer Eddie Chahine, said he was shocked and only knew that Mr Khoury had lost his company a few months ago.

While 180 cars remain unaccounted for, during the investigation detectives recovered the $650,000 Ferrari at a property in Greenacre.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Sydney car dealer faces 24 fraud charges

A magistrate says a substantial surety would be needed to release on bail a Sydney car dealer facing multi-million dollar fraud charges.

Sid Khoury, 47, of Drummoyne, is charged with 24 fraud offences linked to the sale of vehicles on consignment from his Parramatta Road business.

Arrested on Thursday, Khoury appeared in custody at Burwood Local Court on Friday.

A solicitor for Khoury indicated there would be an application for bail.

However, the matter stalled after police prosecutor Sergeant Maddison Knight said a substantial surety would be required.

“If a substantial deposit is not available then we would be opposing bail,” Sgt Knight said.

“These are very serious matters involving a very large sum of money.”

Prior to the court matter, police said the fraud involved some $15 million and hundreds of vehicles.

“Police will allege dozens of car owners engaged the car yard to sell their vehicles on consignment only to later find the lot empty,” police said in a statement.

“In total 180 vehicles are still missing with the business in the hands of liquidators.”

Khoury’s solicitor confirmed the business had gone into liquidation in April but he added that details in the police facts were “misleading”.

“(The $15 million) isn’t the amount that’s the subject of the charges. That’s the amount that has been calculated as the overall debt,” he told the court.

He suggested a figure of $2.2 million in relation to the fraud matters.

The correct figure was “nowhere near the amount that seems to be thrown around in the police fact sheet and was in the police media release yesterday”, he added.

The court was told that Khoury, a father of two, was being treated for depression and has been living with his mother since going bankrupt.

“The most that anyone can come up with is $7,000,” the solicitor said in relation to surety.

Magistrate Christopher Longley confirmed that a “substantial” surety would be required for bail.

“Bearing in mind the … seriousness of these matters, whatever value it is, it’s a significant amount of money, whether it’s two, 12 or 15 million dollars,” Mr Longley said.

The solicitor said it was unfair two alleged co-offenders arrested along with Khoury were granted bail while his client had not.

A $650,000 Ferrari seized by police on Thursday was taken from the home of one of the co-accused, the solicitor said.

The court stood the bail application aside for Khoury to speak with his solicitor.

The matter is expected to be mentioned again later on Friday.

Source: SMH