SMIRKING SPRUIKER ON FRAUD CHARGES

Rob Dale's committal hearing.

Rob Dale outside Southport Magistrates Court

by Neil Jenman.

For a man facing eight counts of fraud, disgraced get-rich spruiker Robert Norman Dale looks pretty pleased with himself.

Despite being on bail, Dale has a seemingly perpetual smirk on his face.

When he first strode into the Southport Magistrates Court in October last year, Rob Dale beamed at the cameras and gave a V for victory sign. Why so happy?

This week, at Dale's committal hearing, one of his investors was not happy at all. Having invested half a million dollars in a touted exclusive wealth-creation project, Peter Marsh was overcome with emotion in the witness box.

He broke down in tears and had to be excused.

Rob Dale is alleged to have defrauded more than $2 million from investors in a development project called Water at Wooyung. The charges against him follow an investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

ASIC alleges that Dale "dishonestly gained a benefit" by not giving investors what he promised to give them.

Dale had sourced his investors from his get-rich seminars. He told them they could become members of his exclusive 'inner sanctum' but that such membership was by "invitation only".

It is alleged that, at the time Dale enticed the investors to part with their money, he did not even own the proposed development site in which the investors were placing their money.

Dale later bought the site using vendor finance. But, when he defaulted on his payments, the site was re-possessed and sold for $800,000 less than Dale paid for it.

Rob Dale, who was promising to make others wealthy, then became bankrupt for the fifth time.

Rob Dale - who has, in the past, sent threatening legal letters to this writer - has now set up a web site with a photograph of himself laughing hysterically. Yes, it's all very funny.

He also announces that he has written a book about his activities over the past few years.

As he is facing serious charges, he could have plenty of time to update his memoirs.

Will he still be smirking then?

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