Aussie wanted in Bali denies wrongdoing

9 Jan 2012, 10:12 am   -   Source: AAP
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An Australian businessman wanted in Indonesia to face a charge of embezzlement has denied any wrongdoing and wants to return to Bali to clear his name.

An Australian businessman wanted in Indonesia to face a charge of embezzlement has denied any wrongdoing, saying he is willing to return to Bali to clear his name.

Barry Grossman, who now lives in Perth, became the subject of an extradition request from Indonesian authorities following an accusation that he defrauded another Australian businessman of more than $200,000 through a company operated out of Bali.

If he is found guilty, Mr Grossman, could spend up to four years behind bars.

He is accused by Sydney-based builder Patrick Finlay of taking an order for a shipment of stone that was never delivered.

In a complaint filed with Bali Police, Mr Finlay alleges that he agreed to buy stone from Mr Grossman, although concedes no contract was signed.

"The total money I sent after I agreed to buy natural stone from BKG (Barry Kevin Grossman) was $A236,000 of which only $A136,000 was sent by transfer," Mr Finlay said in a statement to police in March 2008.

Mr Grossman has denied the allegation, saying that while he did receive money from Mr Finlay, the funds were related to "share transactions" and that "there was at no time any discussion of a product order".

"I have never received any order at any time from Finlay or (David) Purll," he said, referring to a second man who alleges he gave money to Mr Finlay, with whom he had entered a partnership, for the purpose of buying stone.

"I received and acknowledged receiving various amounts from them which fall very far short of the $A236,000 Finlay alleges to have paid and claimed to police that he has proof of," Mr Grossman said.

"The evidence he provided, of course, is limited to three transfers totalling some $A93,000."

The pair once worked together in building one of Sydney's most lavish properties, the Point Piper mansion known as Villa Veneto which sold last year for $52 million, and for which Mr Grossman supplied much of the stone.

Mr Grossman said his company, Goliath, had been forced to cease trading as a result of the legal action against him.

"My company did not, however, go bust. It simply stopped production. Sadly, the dozens of Indonesians previously employed had to be let go," he said.

The Bali Police and Indonesia's Ministry of Law and Human Rights have confirmed an extradition order had been lodged with Australian authorities.

A spokesperson for the Australian Attorney-General's Department refused to comment directly on the case, saying it was longstanding practice not to disclose whether an extradition request had been received until the person was arrested or brought before a court.

But Mr Grossman, who left Bali in 2010, said he reported to both the Australian Federal Police and the extradition unit at the Attorney General's Department, including providing details of his address, shortly after arriving in Australia in August 2011.

The 52-year-old, who has a wife and daughter still in Bali, said he has consistently expressed a willingness to voluntarily return to Indonesia but wants an assurance that he would receive a fair trial.

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