‘Show me your wealth’: Liquidator orders Natasha Donnelly to reveal finances after latest collapse

Natasha Marshall Donnelly, the daughter of football legend Denis Marshall and wife of ex-West Coast Eagle Andrew Donnelly, has been asked to detail her personal finances in the wake of another company collapse. Meanwhile, a victim in the fallout, who sold his business to the Donnellys but didn’t get paid, has vented frustration at the corporate regulator’s failure to take action against the couple. Paul Crennan said his complaints to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission had fallen on deaf ears. Profounder C&H Mining is the 12th Donnelly-owned company to hit the wall in recent years. Ms Marshall Donnelly was the sole director of the company, but Mr Crennan said it was her husband who negotiated the sale and called all the shots thereafter. Liquidator Daniel Bredenkamp of Pitcher Partners acknowledged in his recent report to creditors that Mr Donnelly might be a shadow director — effectively in charge. He reported Ms Marshall Donnelly had failed to co-operate with his enquiries, “despite numerous requests”. “As I have not received the company’s books and records from the director, I have been unable to conduct sufficient investigations into any potential recovery actions,” he wrote. “This breach has been reported to ASIC for their consideration and next steps.” The company, a mining services contractor, had just $11 in the bank and potentially owed creditors as much as $2.8 million, with Mr Crennan owed most of that. The WA Commissioner of State Revenue, which petitioned the court to wind-up the company, is owed $21,403. Mr Bredenkamp is trying to ascertain the whereabouts of six motor vehicles registered to the company as well as equipment including forklifts and cranes, but said he’d been hindered by the non-co-operation by the director. It’s a similar story with ongoing liquidations into other related companies. For example, in the case of Profounder Plumbing and Gas Pty Ltd, liquidator David Hodgson is trying to get details from the Donnellys on the sale of 15 vehicles prior to his appointment. Dr Hodgson has also complained to ASIC about a lack of assistance. Mr Bredenkamp said his preliminary investigations had revealed several possible offences, including that Ms Marshall Donnelly had “failed to discharge her duties with the degree of due care and diligence that a reasonable person would as the company incurred liabilities which resulted in it being wound up”. “It appears that the director may have been reckless or intentional dishonest in failing to exercise duties in good faith,” he added. “The director acquired the C&H Mining Services business by vendor finance and failed to make any payment of the purchase price, while advancing their own interest by granting (a security interest) in favour of their related entity Amulet Securities Pty Ltd.” Mr Bredenkamp said Ms Marshall Donnelly may have breached her duties by potentially trading whilst insolvent, but it was unclear for how long. Directors can be held personally liable for debts incurred after the date of insolvency. “I consider that the director may be personally liable for any debts incurred. Further, if it is proven that the director’s husband, Andrew Donnelly, was a shadow director of the company during the relevant period, he may also be personally liable for debts incurred,” he wrote. “I intend to formally request a statutory declaration from the director detailing her personal assets and liabilities to determine whether it is commercially feasible to pursue an insolvent trading claim.” As with other present liquidations of companies operated by the Donnellys, Mr Bredenkamp is unfunded and is reliant on ASIC providing funds or creditors putting up money, to advance his investigations. Without support, he is hamstrung. “I will not be undertaking any further investigations unless further records or funding becomes available,” he wrote. On Friday, Mr Bredenkamp said nothing had changed since he wrote his report. Mr Crennan said he was frustrated by ASIC’s apparent inaction. “It drives you nuts,” he said. “I’ve dobbed (Andrew Donnelly) into ASIC several times. I’ve tried giving them information. No one ever contacts me back. You never hear back. So they just get away with it. “What annoys me is that all these laws are in place. It’s illegal for a director to do this. It’s illegal for them to do that ... you must act in the best interest of a company at all times. But if you don’t, there’s no consequences. There’s no company police that come around and go, ‘mate, you’re under arrest’.” Mr Crennan, who continued to manage the company for a period after the sale, said he never had anything to do with Ms Marshall Donnelly. He said all his interactions were with her husband. “I’ve never even met her, spoke to her, nothing. It was all him, all the way through, like he’s the one that signed the agreements,” he said. Under the sale agreement, Mr Crennan said he was meant to receive 50 per cent of the profits for five years, but despite him bringing in lots of work for the busy business, he alleged it didn’t turn a profit after the 2020 sale, because Mr Donnelly was taking so much money out of the business, some of which was allegedly moved around other Donnelly companies. A spokesperson for ASIC said the regulator was unable to comment on specific cases, but said it took very seriously patterns of repeated company failures, concerns raised by external administrators and indications of phoenix-type conduct are matters. “Under the Corporations Act 2001, ASIC has a wide range of enforcement powers available in response to such conduct. This includes administrative director disqualification for up to five years, applying to a court for disqualification orders of up to 20 years, and taking a civil or criminal action where evidence supports it,” they said. “ASIC uses statutory reports from liquidators and other information to assess whether director behaviour warrants further regulatory action, including possible disqualification from managing corporations. “Decisions about enforcement action are made in line with ASIC’s legislated powers, the evidence available and the broader public interest.” The Sunday Times has calculated that total estimated liabilities from ten of the insolvent Donnelly companies exceed $22 million, with unsecured creditors owed an estimated $13.7 million. For the past two years Consumer Protection in WA has been investigating two defunct Donnelly companies, Factory Direct Group and Profounder Factory Direct. Scores of customers who paid for patios, carports, garages and sheds but got nothing in return are among unsecured creditors owed almost $1.2m by the firms. In July 2023, Consumer Protection urged the public to be wary of Factory Direct given its shocking record of taking large advance payments and failing to deliver. “With regard to Factory Direct, our investigation remains ongoing,” a spokesperson said on Friday. The Donnellys were contacted for comment.