Nant whisky to be investigated by Tasmania Police over alleged fraud

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-23/nant-whisky-to-be-investigated-by-tasmania-police/8836186

Angry investors who purchased barrels of award-winning Nant whisky, only to be left thousands of dollars out of pocket, have been told Tasmania Police will launch a criminal investigation into the saga.

Almost 900 investors bought barrels of whisky from Nant after production began in 2008, according to a list kept by the business and obtained by the ABC's Background Briefing program.

The barrels, stored in a bonded warehouse on a picturesque estate in the town of Bothwell, north of Hobart, cost as much as $14,000 each.

Nant promised to buy them back once the whisky had matured, with investors to be rewarded with 9.55 per cent compounding interest.

The scheme was designed to raise capital to cover the upfront costs of whisky production and the redevelopment of the estate, which includes a distillery.

But for many investors, the long-awaited payday never materialised.

An audit of the business, carried out by the publicly-listed Australian Whisky Holdings after the company announced plans to acquire Nant last October, contained shocking revelations.

The audit revealed more than 700 barrels had never been filled with whisky, an unknown number were missing, and others had been secretly decanted, bottled, and sold to the public without the knowledge of investors.

Nant founder Keith Batt declared himself bankrupt in December 2015, owing $16 million from his previous property ventures.

He consequently removed himself as a director of all Nant businesses, appointing his wife, lawyer, and accountant as replacements.

The Australian Whisky Holdings audit also showed Nant had acquired significant debt, including an Australian Tax Office bill in excess of $1 million.

A number of employees and contractors who worked at the Bothwell estate claim to have been underpaid or never paid at all.

Similar complaints have been made by staff at a number of Nant bars, which have since closed down.

That's alcohol for you.

freediver wrote on Sep 18^th, 2022 at 4:12am:

The barrels, stored in a bonded warehouse on a picturesque estate in the town of Bothwell, north of Hobart, cost as much as $14,000 each...

"A fool and his money are soon parted".

—Thomas Tusser, 1573.