Victims of an "evil" conman behind an elaborate $5 million superannuation fraud say they were completely fooled by the man they'd known for years.
Several of Mark Steven Grevsmuhl's 74 victims were present at the Brisbane District Court on Thursday, when the 48-year-old was sentenced to 13-and-a-half years' imprisonment.
Therese Mifsud lost everything she had after investing $440,000 in Grevsmuhl's bogus superannuation fund, Axa North.
"He was brilliant. He had paperwork, he had everything that all looked legitimate," she said outside court.
"It's just pure evil; it's calculating; he knew what he was doing."
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The court heard Grevsmuhl targeted family members and friends, and used his children's sporting clubs to find new targets.
His victims included a disability pensioner, a cancer sufferer, a widow and single parent.
He created a phantom office in Melbourne and a fake website complete with testimonials to lend credibility to his scheme.
An expert salesman, he offered his victims modest returns - later admitting to police he'd been careful not to make the offer seem too good to be true.
Disability pensioner Diane Rogers lost $360,000 to a man she knew and trusted.
"We'd known the man for 15 years," she said outside court.
"He's known my children since they were very small. I feel very empty."
Crown prosecutor Christopher Cook said the married father of four gambled most of his victims' money away.
He also used it to maintain his double life as a family man and pillar of the community, despite being unemployed.
But six years of fraudulent investment schemes finally ended in November 2014 when a client was unable to withdraw her money and went to police.
Grevsmuhl made full admissions and pleaded guilty to six counts of fraud and one count of uttering a forged document on Thursday.
He will be eligible for parole in April 2019.
