Former LJ Hooker agents charged with fraud face court

Two former LJ Hooker Glen Waverley real estate agents charged with misappropriating funds from a trust helped themselves to $4 million but have repaid some of it, a court has heard.

Tri Duc (Joseph) Ngo and Truc Thanh (Judy) Nguyen are charged with misappropriating funds, after the final loss was calculated at $2.1 million, Fairfax media reported.

JNT operated businesses including LJ Hooker branches in Keysborough, Mount Waverley, Glen Waverley, Burwood, Doncaster and Box Hill.

Joseph Ngo has indicated he will plead guilty to about 300 charges, but his wife, Judy, may fight the charges.

Ngo says he was the only one with access to the trust account and he was the one who conducted the offending.

Tri Duc Ngo , a former Glen Waverley real estate agent, and his wife are accused of dozens of electronic transfers from rental and sales trust accounts into a company JNT Law Investments for its own use.

In the Melbourne Magistrates Court today, the lawyer for the accused, Erol Cinar, asked for a five-week adjournment of the matter, saying he was going overseas for a week and needed to meticulously analyse voluminous files. 

Nine internal Consumer Affairs witnesses and 19 other witnesses were on standby in case they were required to give evidence at a committal hearing.

The case was adjourned until June 2 for committal mention.

Nguyen was recently trading again, working as a business development manager at Springvale Real Estate business, Oz Capital.

Mrs Nguyen, who as at last April had a property portfolio estimated at $4.65 million, offered for sale her two Narre Warren North homes earlier last year without success. The two houses are at 2-4 Cranston Close and 6-8 Cranston Close.