Tax scammer puts mansion on market
A GOLD Coast businessman jailed for his involvement in one of Australia’s biggest tax scams has listed his luxurious Ashmore mansion.
Adam John Hargraves, 48, has put his lavish, sixbedroom property on the market after purchasing it for $2.295 million in March last year.
He and his wife have updated the waterfront Riverbank Court property, including a new pool in October valued at more than $30,000, according to CoreLogic.
The 1244sq m renovated property features a sunken sitting area and cabana by the pool, a fire pit, glass-encased wine display, home theatre and four-ensuited bedrooms as well as two self-contained, one-bedroom apartments with private entrances.
The listing says the owners have purchased elsewhere but property records are yet to show any new purchases in Mr or Mrs Hargraves’ names.
Mr Hargraves and his business partner Daniel Aran Stoten were charged as part of the decade-long operation Project Wickenby, the largest tax investigation undertaken in this country.
The pair were found guilty of avoiding nearly $2.2 million in company and personal tax from May 2001 to June 2005 through their business Phone Directories Company, which produced and distributed local telephone directories. They were sentenced to six-and-a-half years in jail after a six-week trial but the sentence was reduced to five years with a non-parole period of two years and six months on appeal.
Mr Hargraves’ brother Glenn Hargraves was found not guilty in the same trial.
Last year he added to a slew of traffic-related matters when he pleaded guilty to driving at 123km/h in a 50km/ h zone at Robina Town Centre in his Maclaren supercar.
He was fined $1100, disqualified from driving for six months and lost eight demerit points.
More recently, Mr Hargraves has rebuilt his career as co-chief executive of Robina-based company Localsearch.