Sam Kanjo of Kanjo Group – Chronic Gambler and Fraudster (Update 2024)
Sam Kanjo is a notorious figure. In 2012, Courier Mail reported that Tom Waterhouse had sued him for an alleged $400,000 Spring Carnival betting debt.
Waterhouse had filed this case in the Supreme Court to recover his funds. Keep in mind that Tom Waterhouse is the son of prominent horse trainer Gai.
According to the lawsuit, Waterhouse had granted Sam Kanjo aka Wissam Sam Kanjo betting credits in October 2011.
He made several bets between the period Oct 28 and Nov 10 in 2011. Through them, he ended up in $400,000 in debt to the bookie.
Tom issued a letter of demand and waited for a month. However, he didn’t receive the amount. So, he filed a lawsuit against Sam.
While filing the suit, Tom had also pointed out that he would charge interest on the debt until Sam Kanjo repays the same.
That’s not all. Even the Supreme Court of Queensland has recognized the chronic gambling problem of Sam Kanjo of the Kanjo Group.
When A Judge Recognized Sam Kanjo’s Degenerate Gambling Problem: Kanjo Group Pty Ltd V Aurukun Shire Council
Kanjo Group Pty Ltd had filed a lawsuit against Aurukun Shire Council in 2012 and the Chief Justice dismissed it. They also ordered Kanjo Group Pty Ltd to pay the defendant’s costs and incidental to the proceeding.
The dispute was about the lease of a property where Aurukun Shire Council was the lessee.
Here, Sam Kanjo has acted as a representative of the Kanjo Group Pty Ltd on several occasions.
In the court documents, the Chief Justice has made some remarks on the credibility of Sam Kanjo and why he didn’t trust his statements.
The judge pointed out that Sam Kanjo has numerous convictions for deceit and he has attributed his evidence to his gambling addiction. Furthermore, Sam’s credit account with the bookmaker Tom Waterhouse was proof of how grave his gambling problem is.
The judge also pointed to Sam Kanjo’s statement where he said “he has to do anything he can” to get money.
During the lawsuit, the Chief Justice noted that Sam Kanjo has a chronic gambling problem and was convicted of fraud in 2012
In this case, Sam Kanjo had told the representative of the Aurukun Shire Council in their early meetings that he was a wealthy man. When he was challenged in his evidence during the lawsuit, Sam Kanjo said he was referring to his family, not in the sense of them being wealthy people but their being his family.
The judge highlighted that Sam Kanjo had failed to inform the defendant’s representative that he was a chronic gambler and a bankrupt.
Later, he presented the Kanjo Group as a company with 20 years of experience in setting up cafes and restaurants. In reality, the company had a value of $4 with no assets as they had incorporated it only a few months ago.
Furthermore, Sam Kanjo promised them that Kanjo Group will be investing more than $500,000 in various projects at Aurukun.
During interrogation, he revealed that the source of these funds would have been the income the business would have generated over the coming 2 years. According to the judge, this was not credible.
That’s not all.
He retained a driver’s license which had a false birth date. Then, he used it to support a $400,000 credit application he submitted to Tom Waterhouse. This way, he tried to complicate any attempt at recovery of the funds in case he defaulted.
Also, he was aware that he couldn’t seek credit without revealing the fact that he’s bankrupt. So, he signed a guarantee in favor of Island and Cape in relation to its supply of goods to the Kanjo Group. Then, he “disingenuously” disclaimed the seriousness of his most recent conviction for fraud in 2012, claiming himself to be a victim of a ‘technicality’.
Sam Kanjo and Kanjo Group’s Involvement in Another Lawsuit:
The cases I shared above aren’t the only cases Sam Kanjo has been involved in. In 2019, he faced another lawsuit where he and Nicole Kanjo had used technicalities to get hold of over $400,000 illegally.
Here’s a snippet of the lawsuit:
Initially, the judge ruled in their favor but the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police won the case in the Appeals Court, making sure that they aren’t able to use their criminal proceeds.
You can view the entire file here:
Conclusion
Clearly, Sam Kanjo has a shady past. Currently, he claims to be a hospitality specialist at Doctors orders Canteen – Degani Cafe. He also claims to be a self-employed business owner in Melbourne for over 32 years.
However, seeing his past criminal activities, it’s very difficult to trust these claims.
One thing is certain – people should be wary of dealing with him
What a pathetic character. The man is a disgrace to his family.
The reputation of Sam Kanjo is well-known. According to Courier Mail, Tom Waterhouse sued him in 2012 over a alleged betting debt of $400,000 for the Spring Carnival. This case was filed by Waterhouse in the Supreme Court in order to recover his funds. The horse trainer Gai Waterhouse’s son is Tom Waterhouse. In October 2011, Waterhouse granted Sam Kanjo aka Wissam Sam Kanjo betting credits. From October 28 through November 10, 2011, he made a number of bets. As a result of them, he was in debt to the bookmaker for $400,000, so he decided to restructure his debt. The letter of demand was sent and Tom waited for a month before acting. He never received the money, however. Sam was sued by him as a result. Tom had also stated in the lawsuit that he would charge interest until Sam Kanjo repaid the debt.