Extraordinary list of ways couple ‘spent £6million mistakenly paid into their account’ revealed as they appear in court
THE extraordinary multi-million dollar spending spree of a couple who were mistakenly paid £6million has been unveiled in court.
Thevamanogari Manivel, 40, and her husband Jatinder Singh, 37, are accused of stealing and splurging the cash after a crypto mix-up.
The pair, facing charges of theft, appeared in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday via video link from separate prison cells.
If found guilty of stealing the money from the Commonwealth Bank – where it was transferred to – they face up to 20 years in prison.
The court heard how Manivel was accidentally paid £6million by Crypto.com instead of a £60 refund in May last year.
She received the seven-figure sum from the cryptocurrency trader after a staff blunder, but the firm did not notice until an audit in December.
READ MORE ON THE CRYPTO CASE
An employee in Bulgaria entered the wrong numbers into an Excel spreadsheet and the refund request was sent to a payment provider in Australia.
The windfall was then transferred into Manivel’s Commonwealth Bank account, as her husband had purchased crypto with her card.
Singh claims he thought he had won the money being sent a notification from the Crypto.com app about a competition.
He had regularly dabbled in cryptocurrency and racked up £27,789 in his Crypto.com wallet using his debit card.
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But Cyrpto.com compliance officer Michi Chan said there was no competition and they did not send push notifications to inform users they had won.
Magistrates heard Singh had also told Manivel he had bagged a prize, which they both said to police upon their arrests.
The Malaysian nation was arrested at Melbourne Airport in March with a one-way ticket to the South-East Asian country and over £6,000 cash.
Before her airport dash, the disability support worker had transferred more than £2.2million to an HSBC bank account in her home country.
Although £1.3million was later returned, the rest of the money was quickly transferred to unknown accounts, Detective Senior Constable Conor Healy said.
The couple allegedly went on an extravagant spending spree with the funds, purchasing a whopping four houses.
The properties have since been frozen by the Supreme Court as part of ongoing civil action launched by Crypto.com.
Detective Healy claimed more than £4.5million had been sent from Manivel’s account between December 24 2021 and February this year.
This included money spent on a luxury £800,000 pad in Craigieburn that Manivel bought as a “gift” for her sister.
As well as spending nearly a million of their ill-gotten gains on the swanky home for her sister, another £32,000 went on a deposit on a home in Mickleham.
SPLASHING THE CASH
Manivel is alleged to have showered her daughters with gifts – handing £283,700 to one, £243,982 to another and £113,439 to a third.
One of her children in Melbourne also received a £40,000 car while Singh’s pal was bunged almost £700,000 to pay off his mortgage.
The couple are accused of squandering the rest of the cash on furniture, art and other luxury items, despite the Commonwealth Bank alleging the couple had been well informed that the money had been transferred by mistake.
The court heard £1.1million in cash remains missing plus a further £567,000 in assets.
Manivel has insisted she was “duped” by Singh, who mouthed the words “I love you” to her in court, into believing he had won the money.
She pleaded not guilty to three charges, including theft from Commonwealth Bank for withdrawing the money and negligently dealing with the proceeds of crime.
Her lawyer, Jessica Willard, applied for her client to be released on bail with a £5,675 surety from her brother.
She claimed Manivel, who has been in custody since her arrest, was unaware of any criminal charges when she tried to travel home to see her ex-husband and children.
The prosecution opposed bail on the basis Manivel was a flight risk and her release could hinder the recovery of outstanding money.
However, she was granted bail by Magistrate Peter Reardon on strict conditions, including that she surrender her passport and cannot attend any points of departure.
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Singh, who did not apply for bail, pleaded not guilty to charges including theft for withdrawing the Crypto.com money from the bank.
Manivel and Singh are due to face a directions hearing in the county court on November 8.
