Melissa Caddick inquest hears of husband's unusual behaviour

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The first police investigator to work on fraudster Melissa Caddick's disappearance has told an inquest her husband gave conflicting accounts of her final moments.

Detective Sergeant Michael Kyneur told the second day of the Caddick inquest that early on Anthony Koletti's behaviour and his reporting to police were "unusual".

Some 30 hours after Caddick was heard leaving their house in Sydney's eastern suburbs early on November 12 her husband reported she was missing.

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"I was also aware he attended the coastline at Raleigh Reserve (and) he had taken a photograph of a shoe print," Kyneur said on Tuesday.

"I thought that was extraordinary.

"That's a dog park. It's like saying I found a footprint on Bondi Beach."

And he found Koletti's demeanour strange.

"He didn't appear to be overly concerned," he said.

"In my experience, if your spouse or loved one goes missing there is usually some genuine concern or some type of emotion."

But he did not believe that Koletti had murdered his wife.

"There was no evidence that Ms Caddick had suffered injury at the hands of Mr Koletti," he said.

"I concluded that was not a viable proposition."

A bunch of flowers at the fence in front of the Dover Heights home of Anthony Koletti, Melissa Caddick and her 15 year old son reside. Part of Melissa Caddicks remains were found at Bournda Beach on the South Coast of NSW. Dover Heights, Sydney, NSW. 26th February, 2021. Photo: Kate Geraghty

The last known sighting of Caddick was a day after ASIC raided her Dover Heights home on November 11, 2020.

Her Ponzi scheme victims, mostly family and friends, lost $20 to $30 million she used to fund her lavish lifestyle.

In February 2021 her foot encased in a shoe washed ashore at Bournda Beach on the state's south coast.

Kyneur said he believed Caddick had either taken her life due to the financial pressure she was under or "gone to ground," and was voluntarily missing.

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Caddick's risk assessment was deemed "high" following Koletti's report that she was missing on November 13, at 1pm.

Melissa Caddick dress $400,000 son's school fundraiser Anthony Koletti

That suggests Caddick was injured or killed by another person resulting from her criminal activity, or that she possibly fled or committed self-harm in the face of her pending prosecution.

The detective read notes on the police system that Koletti was sweating profusely, flustered and unsure of details regarding when he last saw his wife.

Louise Coleman, junior counsel assisting the coroner, asked if he pressed Koletti on these details when he interviewed him on November 16.

"No," he said.

"This was a statement.

"I didn't cross-examine what he was saying in fairness to him, I also realised his wife was missing and I took that into consideration."

Some of the discrepancies include that Koletti said he first became concerned his wife was missing when he noticed her phone in their walk-in wardrobe, saying he left a post-it note and a gift beside it.

But on his first account to police, Caddick's son alerted him to her phone in the common living area.

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Before Melissa Caddick disappeared in November 2020, the Sydney business woman ripped off more than 60 investors to the tune of $25 million dollars.

Barrister Lachlan Gyles SC, on behalf of the NSW police, said until the morning of a press conference and not including the ASIC search warrant that had precipitated it, it was not an unusual missing persons investigation.

"Ms Caddick at this point could well have walked into her residence or walked into Rose Bay Police Station, or a Gucci retail shop and the investigation would have completed largely without controversy," he said.

The inquest continues.

Source: 9News