THE ex-wife of serial building industry shonk Daniel Roberts says she had no idea that more than $3 million flowed through the bank account of a company she was meant to be running.
Angela Roberts was the sole director of DSD Builders for four years until February last year when Shumit Banerjee, of Westburn Advisory, was appointed by courts to liquidate the business which collapsed under debts of more than $5 million.
Ms Roberts, who divorced in October last year, told the Sydney Supreme Court on Monday that she was instructed to do things by Roberts and his business partner, Shashanth Shankar Tellakula Gowrishankar.
"Daniel repeatedly advised that nothing do to with the business was anything to do with me," she said. "It was his and Shashanth's business."
Ms Roberts, of Charlestown, was giving evidence at a public examination into the collapse of Hunter-based DSD Builders, trying to piece together a picture of where the millions went and how much, if any, is left for creditors.
The court heard she signed documents, opened bank accounts and moved money at the request of either Roberts of Shankar.
Ms Roberts said that outside of what she was instructed to do or what she overheard in the car or during dinner outings, she had no knowledge of the pair's business dealings.
She said she was also unaware she was a director and shareholder of multiple other companies linked to them.
"It would be an instance where either Daniel or Shashanth Shankar would just advise I had to sign documents," she said.
"Whether they were in relation to specifically DSD Builders or another company, I honestly can't differentiate what is was for, there were numerous companies."
A Newcastle Herald investigation revealed in November 2020 that Roberts and his business partner Shankar were linked to numerous building companies accused of leaving a string of construction and financial disasters across the Hunter.
Creditor Goodwin Street Developments, made up of five mum-and-dad Hunter investors, helped fund the public examination after its Jesmond student accommodation project, that was meant to house up to 35 students at a cost of about $2.4 million, has been left sitting derelict and unfinished for years.
It's estimated the developers are about $4 million out of pocket after DSD Builders failed to complete the project.
The Newcastle Herald reported in June, that under new laws introduced last year, Roberts was found personally liable for defects, damage and theft at the Jesmond site estimated to be worth almost $900,000.
The Supreme Court found that after Goodwin Street Developments terminated the contract with DSD Builders, Roberts took to deliberately trashing the property and stealing building materials, the damage bill estimated at $300,000.
Sewer pipes were blocked with concrete, a circular saw used to cut through structural beams, holes drilled through walls, plumbing, external cladding and the roof and the bathroom waterproofing was deliberately damaged. Roberts also stole the internal stairs, skylights and almost every window and door from the property.
Breaking down during her evidence, Ms Roberts said she understood DSD Builders was constructing student accommodation but she never enquired how it was going.
"When I was at the bank, as I was instructed to open up bank accounts by Daniel Roberts and Shashanth Shankar, when I went to the bank to open the bank accounts..., they asked me what my role was and I didn't know," she said.
"So I had to call them, either I had to call Daniel or Shashanth at the time to ask what my role was in those businesses."
She recalled Roberts calling her and telling her she needed to dress professional and attend a business meeting, where the contract for the Goodwin Street Developments' project was signed.
When Ms Roberts did ask her then husband about his business dealings, she said he refused to tell her.
"He would generally start a fight with me and advise me that I didn't work and I needed to just do what he told me to do," she said.
Under questioning by lawyer Blake O'Neill, assisting the liquidator, Ms Roberts said she had little knowledge about a series of transactions over days in her bank account ranging from a deposit of $190,000 to a withdrawal of $80,000.
She told the court she did not have a joint bank account with Roberts when they were married and she had no idea if he had personal bank accounts.
"An amount of those sizes, generally it would have been Daniel advising money's coming into the account and then what to do with it," she said.
Ms Roberts said she knew Shankar's wife Aarthi Dhandayutham, but did not discuss business with her.
"I never discussed her involvement with the company," she said. "At a certain point I was no longer to speak with her or be social with her, as Daniel directed not to have a friendship with her."
She went further to explain why the women were not allowed to be friends.
"Daniel stated that he didn't want personal and work information to be relayed," she said. "For me to relay personal information to Aarthi because Daniel and Shashanth had a working relationship."
Ms Roberts said she had no idea that more than $3 million passed from the bank account of DSD Builders, which she was the sole director of, to another company BH Australia Constructions, which Ms Dhandayutham was the sole director of.
"I was completely unaware," she said.
When asked about the relationship between Roberts and Shankar, Ms Roberts said she couldn't differentiate between the pair.
"It's my understanding that one did not make a decision without the other," she said. "It was constant consultation with each other."
The court heard the pair were working on a 20-unit development at Abel St, Wallsend.
Shankar was due to give evidence on Monday, but he did not appear.
The matter was adjourned by Senior Deputy Registrar Jennifer Hedge to a later date.
