Banned trail book dealer Mark Whittingham is accused of dishonestly obtaining nearly $1m through the sale of trail books and rent rolls, documents have revealed.
Whittingham yesterday fronted Melbourne Magistrates Court for a filing hearing relating to 50 charges of Obtain Financial Advantage by Deception. Attending the hearing yesterday, Australian Broker obtained a list of the charges, which show Whittingham stands accused of dishonestly obtaining $915,531.26.
The charges relate to incidents ranging from December 2010 all the way to as recent as August 2013. The amounts alleged to have been dishonestly obtained from individuals range from as low as $218 to as high as $158,528.
The common theme in the charges is that Whittingham is accused of being false and misleading in leading victims to believe that he had legitimate trail books and rent rolls for sale, that deposit monies would be held in trust and were refundable, that he would arrange a meeting between the alleged victims and the trail book or rent roll owners and that he was acting on instructions of a legitimate owner of a trail book or rent roll.
Whittingham will appear in court again on 29 May. As a condition of his bail, Whittingham was told he must surrender his passport and all travel documents, must continue to reside at his current address, must report to a local police station every Monday and Friday and must not have any involvement in the mortgage industry.
Australian Broker will continue to report on the case as it develops.
