The murder of Michael McGurk was an Australian contract killing. McGurk, a Scottish-born Australian businessman, was murdered by a single gunshot to his head on 3 September 2009 outside his , Sydney family home. In October 2010 five men were arrested and several charges laid; and by April 2013 four of them had been convicted and jailed in connection with the murder of McGurk. The last accused, businessman Ron Medich, was, in April 2018, found guilty by a jury in the Supreme Court of New South Wales of orchestrating the murder of McGurk, and of intimidating McGurk's wife. In June 2018 Medich was sentenced to a 39-years custodial sentence, with a 30 year non-parole period.
Michael McGurk
McGurk, born Mick Rushford in 1958 in Glasgow, Scotland, was raised in the Gorbals notorious slum area by his grandmother and brothers; although some media reports claim that Rushford was raised in Edinburgh.
Rushford travelled to Australia in 1993, where he began working with ECC Lighting, in inner Sydney. Whilst he was employed at ECC, Customs officers found out that Rushford had overstayed his temporary visa. Served with a deportation notice, Rushford left Australia, travelling to New Zealand, via Fiji, and returned with a new passport and new identity as Michael Loch McGurk, altering his birth date from 1958 to 1964.
McGurk rose far above his impoverished roots, living in a $4 million home, driving a Mercedes S-Class, and taking luxury ski holidays. Described by some media agencies as an alcoholic and a heavy cocaine user, McGurk was variously reported as the director of 28 failed or deregistered companies; a standover man, fixer and debt collector; a lender of last resort; negotiator; and a property developer. Media reports claim that McGurk was involved in supplying prostitutes to high-profile people, including leading sports figures and, in the last weeks of his life, was negotiating a property deal with associates of nightclub identity John Ibrahim.
Business links with Ron Medich His main trading vehicle, Bentley Smythe and associated companies, Bentley Smythe Financial Services, Bentley Smythe Mortgage Fund No 1, and Bentley Smythe Mortgage Fund No 2, were all reportedly solvent at the time of his death. Eagle Street Finance, a wholly owned subsidiary of Brisbane-based H&G Corporate, had a registered mortgage over the assets of Bentley Smythe Mortgage Fund No 1. His sometime business partner and BRW Rich 200 member, Ron Medich had an interest in one of McGurk's companies, Business Investment Opportunities. Of the ten million shares in this company (issued at $1 each), Ron Medich Properties owned 380,000 of the shares, with the remainder owned by Celtic Sydney, a company wholly owned and controlled by McGurk.
Other media reports claimed that McGurk died owing millions. McGurk was reportedly two months in arrears on the $2.4 million mortgage on his Cremorne house to the mortgagee, Bankwest. In investigating the details provided at time of approving the loan, Bankwest found that the information supplied by McGurk was allegedly fraudulent. The tax files and pay slips McGurk had provided to obtain the loan had been forged. Title to the house was in the name of McGurk's wife. Following revelations of the fraud, Bankwest advised McGurk that, as mortgagee, it intended to sell the property. McGurk sought assistance from Medich who reportedly lent him $3.6 million to pay out Bankwest. McGurk also owed Medich $10 million at the time of his death, relating to Medich's equity in Business Investment Opportunities.
In an interesting twist of fate, Medich, together with Graham Richardson, a political lobbyist and former Labor federal minister, met Sam Haddad, the Director-General of NSW Planning, the day before the alleged murder of McGurk and reportedly discussed why Haddad overrode senior planning officials' recommendation that the Medich land be rezoned after a meeting with Frank Sartor, at the time the Labor NSW Minister for Planning. Reports of the financial relationship between Medich and Richardson varied, with McGurk alleging to Herald journalists that Richardson was on a retainer of $25,000 per month, whereas Medich claimed that Richardson was being paid $5,000 per month.
Civil dispute between Medich and McGurk In various media reports, it was claimed that Medich and McGurk were in dispute, including matters that were brought before the Federal Court by Medich against McGurk and his wife, and various companies associated with McGurk. These matters were heard by the Court and dismissed on 8 April 2009, due to Medich failing to disclose material facts.. Costs were awarded against Medich. In another matter that is yet to be resolved, Medich and McGurks' executors are in dispute..
Other business links Prior to his death, McGurk was negotiating a property deal for Bob Ell, a BRW Rich 200 billionaire. Ell's company, Leda Holdings, had interest in Kings Cross landmark property, the Crest Hotel. Ell sought to redevelop the Crest and buy the property from Australand for $70 million. According to media reports, McGurk was negotiating on behalf of Ell and for business associates of John Ibrahim to run the downstairs bar area of the Crest in return for an investment of $10–$15 million. McGurk was working with Ell to collect rent from tenants and met disgraced former company director, Jim Byrnes. Despite initially being on opposing sides of negotiations, Byrne and McGurk would later form a friendship, and work together for Ell. Leda Holdings held a $450,000 mortgage over McGurk's city office on York Street, Sydney – which is owned by McGurk's wife. It was reported that Australand rejected the McGurk's proposal just days before his death.
McGurk's company, Bentley Smythe, had previously lent up to $1 million to businessman Richard Woods. Woods was the owner of a bathhouse which was beset by leaking water problems, located on the first floor of the Crest Hotel building. Theo Baker, a Sydney telecommunications and financial software millionaire and another BRW Rich 200 member, provided McGurk with a $300,000 loan to retain his black Mercedes S-class, following repossession of the vehicle by a finance company. Baker's loan was also secured by a mortgage against a city property owned by McGurk's wife.
HSBC Bank Australia held a second mortgage over the Cremorne family home. It was reported that HSBC, as mortgagee in possession, placed a property owned by McGurk, located in Orlando Avenue, Cremorne, up for mortgagee sale.
At various times McGurk's business associates included Mark Burby, a Jersey businessman, who together with McGurk were allegedly planning to blackmail the Sultan of Brunei following an earlier unsuccessful attempt to sue the Sultan for reneging on a deal to buy a 400-year-old miniature Koran. According to Burby, the blackmail related to "...an ongoing private matter involving one of the Sultan's relatives".
Closed or failed companies The closed and failed companies associated with McGurk and financial position (where known) included: Tandew – The Federal Court ordered liquidation of the company in February 2007 following an application by the Deputy Commissioner of Taxation. Debts of $1.95 million were outstanding Australian Residential Land Company – application for voluntary deregistration lodged on 24 July 2009 by the directors, McGurk and Medich. The sole shareholder of this company is a company whose directors include Neville Wran, a former Labor Premier Acett – Ron Medich Properties (a company controlled by Medich) made application on 15 April 2009 for Acett to be wound up; and later withdrew the application The Australian Hotel Group – liquidators were appointed in September 2005. McGurk was not a director of this company at this point in time; serving as a director between 2001 and 2004. It was reported that in April 2008, the company has debts of $4.4 million to 24 creditors
Chilfunky Amswell MMG Investments ATC Growth Re-Educate Thermoelectric International Sports Management International Australian Telecommunications Consortium Grand Prix Swimming
Connections with the Labor Party McGurk had also been lobbying on the sale of Currawong, a Pittwater site owned by Unions NSW. Moses Obeid, the son of disgraced former Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid, helped McGurk negotiate with John Robertson, then Secretary of Unions NSW. Following McGurk's death, Robertson stated that McGurk was representing Medich and that while their $30 million bid for Currawong was the highest, it was conditional on development approval. Unions NSW accepted a bid for a lesser amount, because there were no conditions attached.
Richard Vereker, an associate of McGurk and aged 68 at the time of McGurk's death, was mentioned in a 2008 ICAC inquiry involving Wollongong City Council. At this Inquiry, ICAC found that eleven individuals engaged in various forms of corrupt conduct between 2004 and 2007. Vereker, a former butcher, bookmaker, and Wollongong businessman, had reportedly facilitated a meeting between McGurk and Graham Richardson that later led to McGurk attempting to exhort Medich. Vereker, a disability pensioner, was reportedly NSW Labor's second largest individual donor, with a political donation of $75,000 in the 2007 state election campaign. On 1 July 2010, Vereker, with Mark Abernethy, published a biography of McGurk, called The Fast Life and Sudden Death of Michael McGurk.
The Sydney Morning Herald also revealed links with Craig Knowles, a former NSW Planning Minister, and with Lucas Neill, a captain of the Socceroos, in McGurk's alleged role as a financial middleman for the set-up of a proposed western Sydney A-League soccer team. The registered office of Sydney Wanderers Football Club, the legal entity of the new club, was the offices of Bentley Smythe in York Street, Sydney – McGurk's place of business. The proposal to set up the new soccer club collapsed on 2 September 2009, the day before McGurk's murder. It was later revealed that McGurk was acting on behalf of Paddy Dominguez, Neil's manager and Bob Ell, a potential sponsor of the soccer club.
Criminal investigations against McGurk In early 2009, McGurk had been charged with assault and two charges of firebombing houses, one of which was that of Adam Tilley, allegedly firebombing the Point Piper home in November 2008. Tilley purchased the Wolseley Road mansion from Medich for $12.5 million in 2004. Central to the dispute between Tilley, Medich, and McGurk was an agreement for Tilley and Medich to develop land adjoining the Wolseley Road property that could potentially yield Medich $20 million (net). As the Great Recession resulted in a dip in property market values, Medich assigned his $10 million interest in the Point Piper property to McGurk. McGurk allegedly demanded Tilley repay the maximum $20 million. McGurk commenced action in the Supreme Court when his demands were refused. Two weeks prior to his murder, the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions dropped the charges, including the alleged firebombing of another property in Queen Street, Beaconsfield, owned by the valuer Stuart Rowan.
McGurk had also been charged in connection with an assault on Rowan after Rowan refused to provide McGurk with a valuation on a Bathurst property. Other charges that were dropped related to the alleged assault on a former employee, Will Manning with a cricket bat and further counts of arson relating to the firebombing of a former business associate's Cremorne property. Media reports claim that McGurk was involved in the alleged firebombing of a Balmoral house, owned by Justin Brown (of CB Richard Ellis); although Brown never pressed charges against McGurk. Brown was also assaulted in his office – allegedly on McGurk's instructions.
Other criminal allegations against McGurk