Couple stole $6.7m from dead man using forged will and fake love story
Matthew Barnes and Magnolia Farmer forged a will. They faked romance. They stole a dead man's $6.7 million estate.
Marino 'Mingo' Mikleus, 64, died of natural causes in August 2023. The true will left everything to his elderly mother, who lived in a nursing home with dementia.
Barnes broke into Mikleus' East Corrimal home. He stole documents to copy the signature.
Then he forged a 2021 will. In it, he named himself as Mikleus' "life partner" and sole beneficiary.
Farmer and another co-accused signed false statements. They swore they saw the couple being affectionate.
Probate was granted in January 2024. Barnes then sold four properties for nearly $4m total.
He cashed in a superannuation account and took the estate money. Farmer used her $156,800 share for a cruise and a Toyota RAV4.
Barnes spent millions on cars, jet skis, jewellery, and gambling. Police found an $80,000 Audi, a Ducati motorcycle, a jet ski, methamphetamine, cash, and firearms at his home.
Both pleaded guilty. Sentencing follows.
- $6.7 million
- Estate value
- August 17, 2023
- Death date
- Marino Mikleus, 64
- Victim
- 4 properties for nearly $4 million
- Properties sold
Why it mattersThe scheme shows how vulnerable estates are after death. Detailed fraud can succeed at first. But it falls apart during investigation.
AustraliaA Wollongong case demonstrating risks to elderly Australians' inheritances and the criminal consequences of estate fraud in NSW courts.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
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