Jordan Belfort owes millions to the victims he defrauded. Photo: Louise Kennerley - Missy Higgins lists Bondi apartment
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Jordan Belfort, the Wolf of Wall Street who gained fresh fame through being portrayed by Leonardo di Caprio, is reportedly considering buying a home in Brisbane.
Place Agents managing director Sarah Hackett said Belfort inspected 58 Retreat Street, Bridgeman Downs; a luxurious four-bedroom mansion, as a prospective buyer.
He has also just listed his Long Island mansion for sale, asking $US3.4 million.
Belfort inspected 58 Retreat Street, Bridgeman Downs, which sold for $4.96 million. Photo: Supplied
The estate sits on 1 hectare of suburban land and is touted as one of Bridgeman Downs’ most “palatial” homes. It sold last week for $4.96 million, well above the suburb median for a four bedroom home, which was $710,000. The listing for the home identified Bridgeman Downs as an “enclave” filled with multimillion-dollar homes, and compared it to the Hamptons or Cape Cod in the USA.
Belfort is required to repay millions of dollars to his victims, who he coerced into buying penny stocks in a pump-and-dump scheme, to which he pleaded guilty in the 1990s. He spent 22 months in prison.
Belfort gained notoriety for the crimes after writing his first memoir, The Wolf of Wall Street, which was later adapted into a film of the same name.
Belfort was depicted by Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street. Photo: Supplied
An exact figure has been requested from the US Department of Justice, but the most recent reports suggest he still owed just under $US100 million in repayments.
The Wall Street Journal reported in 2014 that Belfort was living in Australia to avoid repaying his victims, and quoted spokesman for the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York Robert Nardoza saying: “He’s in Australia and using that loophole to avoid paying.”
Belfort rejected these claims, saying: “the US Attorney’s Office, through my attorney, has issued me a personal apology” because of the claims, and the Wall Street Journal later issued a retraction.
In 2015 Belfort was working for Brisbane-based training company Fact-to-Face, which later lost government funding due to a number of complaints.
Belfort has been contacted for comment.