Charbel Douna, Elie Douna: Illawarra twins face court over Lux Living Homes development

The twin brothers allegedly behind an elaborate and far-reaching $14.7 million fraud operation have appeared in court for the first time.

Elie and Charbel Douna, both aged 33, are accused of using falsified contracts and bank statements in an attempt to obtain the multimillion dollar loan to construct luxurious, high-end homes in an estate south of Wollongong.

The twins allegedly made 10 legitimate sales for their development in Avondale but forged the contracts of nine sales in an attempt to secure the loan from Australian Unity Bank.

Police allege the twins kicked off the sophisticated scheme, through their company Lux Living Homes, in December 2020 and continued until their arrest on February 17 of this year.

Charbel charged with ‘disregarding’ the safety of his wife

The alleged housing scam wasn’t the first time the twins caught police attention.

Court documents seen by news.com.au today revealed Charbel is charged with “disregarding” the safety of his wife over their gender reveal party, held at the couple’s sprawling rural estate home in the south Wollongong suburb of Calderwood on May 5, 2019.

A video shared to social media of the day showed Charbel using his Zastava Arms rifle to shoot a balloon, held by his wife and floating just metres above her head, to reveal the pink powder inside.

Due to the video, Charbel now faces two firearm charges - first for allegedly not using it for a “genuine reason” under NSW Firearms Act and secondly, for using the firearm “with disregard for the safety of his wife, himself and/or other persons on/or near his rural residence”.

Appearing briefly in Port Kembla Local Court on Tuesday, the twins sat on opposite sides of the courtroom, both dressed in navy blue suits, and without their wives or children present.

Both twins had a strong social media presence and were well-known across the Wollongong community before their February arrests, thanks in large part to their influencer wives.

Charbel’s wife Sara and Elie’s wife Emily, neither of whom are accused of any wrongdoing, often used their Instagram accounts to show off their luxurious lives.

Photos from the couple’s accounts showed the Douna family jetsetting around the world, dressing in expensive, designer clothing and travelling on helicopters and yachts.

Charbel and his wife Sara also often flaunted their extravagant life on social media.

While Charbel and Elie are facing identical charges for their alleged roles in the Lux Living development scandal, Charbel is also facing firearm charges and two charges for illegally owning poker machines.

During their sweeping raids on the twins’ homes in February, police allegedly found two gaming machines in Charbel’s home.

The twins have not entered a plea to their range of charges which include 19 counts of publish etc false/misleading information to obtain advantage and dishonestly obtain financial advance by deception.

Both Dounas also face a single charge of participating in a criminal group/contribute criminal activity.

Police also allege Benjamin Feltham, 35, co-accused with the twins, used his job as a real estate agent at Right Choice Real Estate in Albion Park to create false or misleading deposit receipts to help secure the loan.

Mr Feltham is facing nine counts of dishonestly make/publish a statement and one count of participating in a criminal enterprise.

Mr Feltham did not appear in court after having his matter moved to June 30.

The twins didn’t say a word as they left court, sticking together as they walked to their cars.

The trio were arrested on February 19 after police raided their homes in the south of Wollongong.

Police allege the trio falsified contracts and bank statements in an attempt to obtain the $14.7 million loan.

The twins’s company Lux Living Homes, based in Albion Park Rail, had plans to build 19 homes in the Avoca Park development but police allege only 10 of the housing contracts were legitimate. Nine were allegedly forged.

Their matter was adjourned to June 30, with police expected to serve its entire brief by June 16.

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