A con-artist inmate has allegedly duped disgraced NRL star Jarryd Hayne out of $780,000 in a Bitcoin sting while the pair were inmates in Cooma Jail.
A jury has delivered its verdict in the rape trial of ex-NRL star Jarryd Hayne after more than a week of deliberating. EXCLUSIVE: A gifted con-artist allegedly duped disgraced NRL star Jarryd Hayne out of $780,000 in a Bitcoin sting while the pair were inmates in Cooma Jail.
Jailed fraudster Ishan Seenar Sappideen allegedly told the former Parramatta Eels star and other inmates he had collected $290m working for an investment company alongside Australian billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes and could earn them big returns if they invested with him. Sappideen, an ex Sydney Grammar student and fast-talking Eastern Suburbs finance worker, is serving a maximum 12 year jail sentence after being convicted in 2018 of fleecing $4.6m from his friends and family in a Ponzi scheme.
His conviction allegedly did not stop the 42-year-old from convincing the former State of Origin star — who was in the jail in 2021 after being jailed for rape — and at least six other inmates, to transfer more than $2m to accounts that were ultimately under his control, between 2020 and 2022.
One of the inmates was a member of the Hamzy crime family, a source said.
Sappideen was moved to segregation in Cooma after Corrective Services NSW’s investigations unit received complaints about his alleged activities and there were fears for his safety. He is now in another prison.
“Earlier this year, CSNSW intelligence officers became aware of allegations an inmate at Cooma Correctional Centre was attempting to coerce and advise fellow inmates to make transactions on the financial markets,” a CSNSW spokeswoman said.
“The accused inmate … has since had his security classification reviewed to enable a higher level of supervision and less freedom. CSNSW refers suspected criminal activity to the Police Corrections Intelligence Unit who share intelligence with relevant state and federal police.” The complaints were referred to the NSW Police Fraud Squad and the Australian Federal Police in March 2023. Sappideen has not been charged.
It is understood Hayne and the other inmates’ money was transferred by people or organisations outside of the jail who had access to their bank accounts or money.
The money was allegedly transferred to business accounts that were controlled by a person, or people, close to Sappideen. The Saturday Telegraph has been told some of the alleged victims are concerned about the roles played by individuals or organisations responsible for transferring their money.
Hayne’s legal team did not answer calls about whether Hayne had reported the alleged theft to police.
A source said Sappideen allegedly showed the inmates financial documents purporting to show massive returns from his Bitcoin investment.
Another source said he had a document purporting to be on the letterhead of Grok Ventures, the private investment company owned by Mr Cannon-Brookes. There is no suggestion that Grok Ventures or Mr Cannon-Brookes had anything to do with Sappideen’s alleged dealings.
“You looked at the documents and listened to the words coming out of his mouth and you’re thinking ‘This has got to be real’,” the source said.
Hayne’s legal team did not answer calls about whether Hayne had reported the alleged theft to police.
A source said Sappideen allegedly showed the inmates financial documents purporting to show massive returns from his Bitcoin investment.
Another source said he had a document purporting to be on the letterhead of Grok Ventures, the private investment company owned by Mr Cannon-Brookes. There is no suggestion that Grok Ventures or Mr Cannon-Brookes had anything to do with Sappideen’s alleged dealings.
“You looked at the documents and listened to the words coming out of his mouth and you’re thinking ‘This has got to be real’,” the source said.
The Saturday Telegraph has been told Hayne had a settlement deed drawn up that was supposed to protect his alleged investment.
It is understood Hayne was focused on his rape case appeal when his money went missing and is yet to pursue any recourse via the police or through a civil court case. Hayne was in Cooma jail after being found guilty of raping a woman at her home in October 2019 and sentenced to five years and nine months jail.
He won an appeal in February 2022 and was granted a retrial only to be found guilty again and jailed for at least three years on May 12.
Even with multiple fraud convictions serving as a red flag against doing business with him, Sappideen’s verbal skills are extraordinary.
When sentencing Sappideen for his $4.6m swindle of his friends and family, District Court Judge Mark Williams SC said his performance skills were better than many barristers.
“I stress that it is difficult to fully appreciate this young man’s confident presentation and his ability to express himself without actually seeing him,” Judge Williams told the court. “His skills in communication and presentation are of an order that would be the envy of many members of the legal procession.”
Judge Williams said Sappideen presented himself “as a person of importance” and a “big noter” who flashed the “false trappings of wealth” to woo his targets. “His manner of speech is both engaging and persuasive,” the judge told the court. Sappideen had maintained the expectations of his investors by paying some with the money he had stolen from others until he was arrested and charged in 2014.
At the time he was still on parole after being jailed for eight years for a similar fraud in 2005.
In 2014, corporate regulator ASIC banned Sappideen from providing financial services after he conned investors out of $500,000 by claiming he had access to Facebook’s initial public share offering. As a third year law student in 2001, he was ordered to perform 250 hours of community service after pleading guilty to stealing $60,000 from his employer, to cover money he had invested for friends and then lost. Sappideen will be eligible for parole on August 27, 2024.
