Buying a home was once a dream—now scammers are stealing $500,000 in seconds
- Replies 4
A couple spent 25 years saving up to buy a home for their ageing parents.
But just days after transferring the funds, they discovered the unimaginable—almost half a million dollars had vanished.
What was meant to be a proud milestone quickly turned into a financial and emotional nightmare.
Mechanic Jimmy Deligiannis and his wife Leanne had worked hard for decades, saving every dollar they could to give back to Jimmy’s parents in the form of a home.
They believed they were transferring nearly $500,000 to Active Property Conveyancing—a legitimate firm they had been dealing with—to finalise the property purchase.
Jimmy even walked into a Commonwealth Bank branch to complete the transfer, hoping to ensure the money would be moved securely.
But the account details had been intercepted and altered by scammers.
Instead of going to the conveyancer, the entire amount was funnelled into a fraudster’s bank account.
By the time the Deligiannis family realised what had happened, six days had passed.
They immediately notified Commonwealth Bank, which moved to recall the funds from the receiving bank, ANZ.
However, the money had already been withdrawn two days earlier, making recovery impossible.
CBA later explained the process it followed during the transfer.
‘When the customer visited the branch to make the transfer, we provided them a private area to go through the details of the transfer, including a document with seven scam-related questions to consider and answer—one of which asked them to confirm they had checked the legitimacy of who they were paying,’ a spokesperson said.
‘Regrettably, the money had left the ANZ Bank account two days after they made the transfer.’
CBA added that the fraudulent emails were sent from a Hotmail address, not their official systems.
‘Our systems remain secure and we are operating as business as usual,’ the spokesperson said.
Active Property Conveyancing also responded to the incident, emphasising the precautions it advises customers to take.
‘This includes very specific instructions to always call our office to verbally confirm account details before transferring any funds,’ the company said in a statement.
‘Unfortunately, in this case, the client didn't call to verify details.’
Like CBA, Active Property Conveyancing confirmed the fake emails were not linked to its domain and stated it had worked with law enforcement.
‘We have taken all appropriate steps in response to the incident. We have cooperated with law enforcement and we are committed to supporting any ongoing investigation.’
The couple now faces the devastating reality of losing a lifetime of savings—money they thought would bring security and joy to their family.
Watch the full report here:
Source: Youtube/A Current Affair
If you thought visiting the bank in person would protect you from scams, you’re not alone—and sadly, it’s not always enough.
This couple believed they were following all the right steps too, until one small mistake changed everything.
Their story is another chilling reminder of how easily scammers can intercept large payments during property purchases.
Read more: Small error wipes out $170,000 house deposit in scam targeting Aussie couple
How do you protect yourself when even doing everything ‘right’ still leads to devastating loss?
But just days after transferring the funds, they discovered the unimaginable—almost half a million dollars had vanished.
What was meant to be a proud milestone quickly turned into a financial and emotional nightmare.
Mechanic Jimmy Deligiannis and his wife Leanne had worked hard for decades, saving every dollar they could to give back to Jimmy’s parents in the form of a home.
They believed they were transferring nearly $500,000 to Active Property Conveyancing—a legitimate firm they had been dealing with—to finalise the property purchase.
Jimmy even walked into a Commonwealth Bank branch to complete the transfer, hoping to ensure the money would be moved securely.
Couple loses $500k in conveyancing scam. Image source: Youtube/A Current Affair
But the account details had been intercepted and altered by scammers.
Instead of going to the conveyancer, the entire amount was funnelled into a fraudster’s bank account.
By the time the Deligiannis family realised what had happened, six days had passed.
They immediately notified Commonwealth Bank, which moved to recall the funds from the receiving bank, ANZ.
However, the money had already been withdrawn two days earlier, making recovery impossible.
CBA later explained the process it followed during the transfer.
‘When the customer visited the branch to make the transfer, we provided them a private area to go through the details of the transfer, including a document with seven scam-related questions to consider and answer—one of which asked them to confirm they had checked the legitimacy of who they were paying,’ a spokesperson said.
‘Regrettably, the money had left the ANZ Bank account two days after they made the transfer.’
CBA added that the fraudulent emails were sent from a Hotmail address, not their official systems.
‘Our systems remain secure and we are operating as business as usual,’ the spokesperson said.
Active Property Conveyancing also responded to the incident, emphasising the precautions it advises customers to take.
‘This includes very specific instructions to always call our office to verbally confirm account details before transferring any funds,’ the company said in a statement.
‘Unfortunately, in this case, the client didn't call to verify details.’
Like CBA, Active Property Conveyancing confirmed the fake emails were not linked to its domain and stated it had worked with law enforcement.
‘We have taken all appropriate steps in response to the incident. We have cooperated with law enforcement and we are committed to supporting any ongoing investigation.’
The couple now faces the devastating reality of losing a lifetime of savings—money they thought would bring security and joy to their family.
Watch the full report here:
Source: Youtube/A Current Affair
If you thought visiting the bank in person would protect you from scams, you’re not alone—and sadly, it’s not always enough.
This couple believed they were following all the right steps too, until one small mistake changed everything.
Their story is another chilling reminder of how easily scammers can intercept large payments during property purchases.
Read more: Small error wipes out $170,000 house deposit in scam targeting Aussie couple
How do you protect yourself when even doing everything ‘right’ still leads to devastating loss?
.png){kind=icon}
