Missing Melissa’s family worried over seized jewellery as investors fret millions

They didn’t leave until 7pm that evening.

The day before, Ms Caddick had been preoccupied with Christmas plans. Her family usually holidayed for a month in Aspen at a $US10,000-a-week apartment. Due to COVID-19, she was organising caterers for a Christmas lunch for 18.

Friends say she was also organising her 50th birthday next April. She told them she had booked a private jet to fly to Hamilton Island, where she had rented a $20,000-a-week villa.

Meanwhile, ASIC obtained orders that prevented her from leaving the country and froze her four CommSec accounts and 13 bank accounts.

Ms Caddick was directed to appear in court at 9.45am on Friday, November 13, with “the name, physical address, email address and phone number of each person” who then had funds deposited with her.

Ms Caddick is believed to have misappropriated between $25 million and $40 million of money that her friends, employees and their families had entrusted her with.

But Ms Caddick did not turn up to court that Friday. Instead, after midday, her husband reported her missing to Bondi police. More than 30 hours had elapsed since Ms Caddick had supposedly gone for a run at 5.30am and had not returned.

Mr Koletti told police they went to bed after midnight and everything seemed “normal”. Ms Caddick did not take her two dogs, as was her custom. She didn’t take her phone. Bondi police, who now have her passport, are still treating the matter as a missing persons case. It is not suggested that her brother or her husband have been involved in any wrongdoing.

Her lawyer’s affidavit indicated that Ms Caddick had $7202 in one account and a debit of $1225 in another. She also had $US33,350 in a NAB account in the name of Caddick Services Trust.

One couple entrusted Ms Caddick with their self-managed super fund, containing $200,000, in 2017. According to the paperwork she provided them, as of the end of 2019 she had made a 74 per cent return. As of September 2020, she had moved out of shares into cash and the listed return was 45 per cent.

In documents seen by the Herald, the name of their super fund varied and their CommSec account, instead of having eight digits, had only six.

Loading

Like many others they are worried that their funds have vanished.

Ms Caddick’s matter will return to court next Tuesday, with her brother having been granted power of attorney. He has asked for ongoing funds to be released from Ms Caddick’s accounts to pay mortgages on the Dover Heights home and the Edgecliff unit that she bought for her parents, Ted and Barbara, for $2.55 million in 2016.

Ms Williamson’s affidavit also requested funds for other “main payments”, including the mobile phones of Mr Koletti, Ms Caddick and her son, and money for Isagenix, a diet protein shake.