Martin Levick was living the high life, but that’s all come crashing down in very dramatic fashion, with the Jozi businessman accused of defrauding investors around the world.

When we last covered his court battles, we spoke at length about his homes in Houghton and Clifton, his Aston Martin, and the mysterious case of the Banksy artwork.

At that time a sequestration application was heard in the Gauteng High Court, and a provisional order was granted with a return date for a final order to take place in June.

That brings us to this week, with the update below via TimesLIVE:

…Levick’s court battle to hang on to plush properties, flashy cars and artworks has failed, with the high court in Johannesburg on Tuesday ordering that he be sequestrated.

Levick, 49, is facing over R712m in claims against his estate. He is alleged to have operated a complex web of fake investments, defrauding clients across the globe…

The provisional order was made final this week after an eleventh-hour bid by Levick’s attorneys to have the matter postponed.

His assets are now firmly in control of a trustee, appointed to formally facilitate the repayment of creditors.

Those seized assets include his custom-made Aston Martin V12 Vantage S, valued at R2,5 million.

Kiss this goodbye, Martin:

Sheriffs and trustees were unable to find some valuable jewellery, though, so perhaps he’s managed to tuck something away for a rainy day.

Here’s a quick little recap of some of the massive numbers being thrown around:

Businessman Real Segal and his family, who are based in Australia, originally applied for Levick’s sequestration. In court papers Segal laid bare how his father Frank’s close relationship with Levick soured after the prolific businessman “misappropriated” $29m (nearly R432m)…

Joining them in the court action is London-based businessman Antony Ball, who has accused Levick of fleecing R115m from his two companies, Chester Holdings Ltd and Illovo Ltd…

Johannesburg businessman Christopher Brand claimed that a R244m investment was misappropriated, while Irish firm AMB Capital is seeking to recoup almost R32m from Levick.

One more time, in case you missed it – he’s facing in excess of R700 million in claims against his estate.

Greed is a helluva thing.

[source:timeslive]