A Gold Coast businessman has been accused of spending almost $40 million of investors’ money at the casino.

After an ASIC investigation, the Federal Court has appointed receivers to 13 companies run by NDIS property developer David George McWilliams.

The corporate watchdog launched action against the developer and his wife Laura Fullarton after a tip-off by the Queensland Office of Liquor and Gaming that Mr McWilliams placed $39,535,728 worth of bets at Star casinos between October 2022 and February this year.

Over the 17 months, he gambled between $500,000 and $5 million per month.

His gambling losses during the period totalled $3.8 million.

He is also suspected of providing financial services without a licence.

Mr McWilliams is the sole director of ALAMMC Developments, a company offering investment opportunities for purpose-built, NDIS housing development schemes across Australia.

The company’s website describes him as the former vice CFO of a major mining company, boasting 30 years of experience across the finance, construction and property development sectors.

Documents tendered in court showed the company offered investors fixed returns of 10 per cent per year, plus a 15 per cent bonus payment upon completion of the development.

ASIC’s investigation found investors had deposited more than $69 million in the company’s accounts since April 2021.

Investigators said financial records show his wife, Laura Mary Fullarton, withdrew $2.5 million from company accounts during the same period and said it appeared she also used investors’ money to purchase a luxury vehicle and unit on the Gold Coast.

Police raided the couple’s home in September where they discovered $112,000 cash inside a locked suitcase in their bedroom.

Personal assets frozen

A judgement from Justice Patrick O’Sullivan, published this week, revealed Mr McWilliams could not explain where the money he had gambled came from.

Justice O’Sullivan said the scope of the couple’s “suspicious conduct” in the management of investor funds could be described at best as “incompetence or carelessness”, and at worst as “serious breaches of trust”.

“Having traced at least some of the funds provided by investors, ASIC concluded that the $39 million used for gambling appeared to have been from those funds,” Justice O’Sullivan said.

Personal assets owned by the couple and their companies have been frozen and Mr McWilliams is banned from leaving the country until July next year.

The court ordered receivers, Helen Newman and Andrew Fielding of BDO, to investigate the amount of investor funds received by ALAMMC Developments and its related entities and provide a report within 28 days.

The ASIC investigation is ongoing.