Property
S pro pain in pert ’s be En y m st gli a sh g
DECO DOZEN
APRIL 2025 MARCH
movement As the Art Deco , we reaches a centurycontribution celebrate Spain’s Xemethe iconic Tres heart of titan of industry, ONCE a towering is set to become the beating neies power plant future. chimneys three colossal Barcelona’s cultural named after its has been gathering dust The 1970s relic, in Catalan), (that’s Tres Xemeneies in 2011. team Garces since it shut down longer. Architecture dream just released But not for muchArquitectes and Marvel have nave va - a de Seta Bonet of their wild new vision: E la dazzling visuals from a classic Fellini flick. bold transforThis borrowed name Meand in comes creativity. Out goes coal the hulking plant into the ‘Catalunya public arts. mation will morph hub for media, tech, and vibes straidia City’, a buzzing hall will be reborn - withPark Avenue The mammoth turbineTate Modern and NYC’s ght out of London’s studios, labs, Armory. film ceilings, epic sound everything from We’re talking 17-metre free space to host and enough flexible showcases. with not been forgotten,are to fests to virtual reality of the station have panels And the origins power - 4,500m² of solar will help it still producing and its smart eco-friendly design roof, crown the footprint. into a cultural futushrink its carbon an industrial pastAnd with views over “This is about turning Jonathan Marvel. like the power plant's re,” said architect it’s looking of electric. the Med and Badalona, be nothing short second act will
ss.es
www.theolivepre
Coal to culture h A forgotten Spanis power plant gets ver, an epic makeo writes Dilip Kuner
DECO DREAMS As it reaches a century, we bring you 8 of Spain’s best Art Deco buildings in our property magazine
OLIVE PRESS
SWEET DEAL
a way to utilise IT was a clever from a local induswaste product . (far left) beand Armor Gutierrez try in Andalucia agricultural waste Spanish and British a gan exploring construction mateA team from worked out the centre of a as a potential universities have eco-friend ly Andalucia has become g project inrial. way to create building manow exploring g sustainable buildinte The project is Sugarcrete producterials from groundbreakin ale of concre 8 utilise up to sugarcane. sugarcane instead which release carbon into the at- dustrial-sc TRAPS: The Sugarcrete tion, which could The group using Man Festival metres of sugarcane CARBON million square southern Spain. the bricks used at Burning mosphere. from in s in Smith project traps carBy Tom Ewart In contrast, theirbuilding materials, plantation claim it will capture car- Further research is plannedthey UniversiEstimates to 46,000 in the new summer, while ty of East bon equivalent impact. after ntal left Granada this used the product to emissions L o n d o n ‘bagasse’, the fibrous pulp reducing environme bagasse with bon will have already in India as well as a cars. ( U E L ) extracting sugarcane juice. prod- Made by combining school go ahead the team a carbon footMan festhe concrete build a found that the bricks have than conven- If given the former and sand, at the Burning of research Their outperturn a number times lower production prototype B aga c e i r a ucts made from this waste and print six bricks. into bio-based economy. tival in the US. when factories Project, in formed traditional concrete tional clay boosting the local launched in 2022 hubs, project Barcelona , clay bricks. The Chandler for researchers Alan w o r k e d Bagasse is typically burned both of UEL out how to fuel or used as cattle feed, repurpose
FREE
COSTA BLANCA
Vol. 6 Issue 154
SCAN here for the latest news
www.theolivepress.es
yorkshirelinencostablanca.com
Jávea · Moraira
April 24th - May 7th 2025
JAIL FOR JODY Costa restaurateur found guilty of fraud linked to €35 million CWM scandal
The
Your expat
voice in Spain
tel: 966 46 38 45
WWW.JAVEA BLINDS.COM
Please stop BREXIT
The Olive Press joined thousands of Spaniards and Brits in last ditch Brexit protest See page 5
EX CLU SIV E
like Want to buy a house tag this? Check the price e in our property magazin FREE inside
COSTA BLANCA
ress.es Vol. 1 Issue 16 www.theolivep
October 24th - November
6th 2019
Profits and losses FREE
d Costa Blanca wealth
of disgrace Petrol bombs and bullets, Directorment firm rakes in €1million for her battle an Olive Press dispatch6 manage of British claimants businesses while trio and depression from Barcelona Page financial ruin, cancer
EX CLU SIV E
How we nailed a corrupt Champagne socialist MP Page 18
An incredible Spanish Inquisition escape 20 Page story
fashion deA WELL-KNOWN expat of receiving up signer has been accused Costa to €1million from an unlicensed company. Blanca financial advisory name were Companies in Jody Smart’sContinental given the money by defunct in the two Wealth Management (CWM) collapse years’ before its high-profile an estimated left hundreds of investors it can be re€20million out of pocket, vealed. paid A total of €999,435 was Bell Jody label fashion to her comSL and property holdingSL bepany Mercurio Conpro tween 2015 and 2017, according to bank statements shown to the Olive Press. paid Brit Jody, 43, was also a €144,000 salary - despite not telling a court that she ‘didbe a know what it meant to and sole director of company’ ‘marketin was only involved ing and PR’. decIn a series of shocking larations given to Denia’s it Court of Instruction No.3 compathe that emerged has these ny could ill afford to pay
EXCLUSIVE By Joshua Parfitt
TRAVEL INSURANCE for Spanish residents
Javea - Denia La Sella Golf Area tel: 966 424 505 mob: 647 575 152
www.globelink.co.uk
BEST
expat
REuse REduce REcycle
EXCLUSIVE
CONFUSION reigns over who should foot the bill for Mallorca hotels hit by the collapse of airline Monarch. Balearic hotels are facing a €10million bill over the collapse that saw the emergency repatriation of over 110,000 back to the UK, many from Palma. Administrator KPMG told the Olive Press ‘the debt owed by Monarch to hoteliers will rank as an unsecured claim’ against the defunct airline. “They will have to file a claim to the joint administrators for all the money they are owed,” said a spokesman. “It has not been determined (yet) how much money will be available to creditors.”
SPECIALIZING IN: CRIMINAL LAW CIVIL LAW
C
M
BANKING (FLOOR CLAUSE) FAMILY LAW
We use recycled paper
26th 2017
As Spain celebrates Hispania Day, the Olive Press runs a rule over Columbus
As sherry gets big in London, we look at some quirky Jerez cocktails
SEE PAGE 10
SEE PAGE 20
PENSION OUTRAGE
Continues on Page 7
Who’s paying us?
Y
CM
MY
CY
CMY
K
e-mail: advocat1@demicco.es mobile number: 636 307 533 WWW.DEMICCO.CH
It is believed at least whose boss Darren Kir- 300 of CWM’s 900 by has now allegedly clients have had their decipots moved to Australia. pension Costa-del-Sol- mated, with victims to end up back in BritOne based expat told the shocked to later dis- ain on benefits.” Olive Press he sunk cover the value of their “I have nothing but through investments had plum- praise for Tony Barnett £59,000 CWM, only realising he meted dramatically. [Trafalgar MD] and had lost £39,000 when However, a source Stewart Davies [Mohis pension trustees close to the case in- mentum chef execuEXCLUSIVE By Joe Duggan sent a statement. sisted: ‘There are still tive]. They have been “I couldn’t believe it. I many customers who magnificent in tryhave lost thousands of are happy with their ing to recoup people’s HUNDREDS of Britpounds,” revealed the pension portfolio.’ money.” ish expats are battling victim, asking to re- A n d a l u c i a - b a s e d The Olive Press unto retrieve their penmain anonymous. tax specialist Angie derstands it is highly sions after losing up to “The adviser kept tell- Brooks, a leading ex- possible legal action £20 million in a failed OFF TO OZ: Boss Kirby ing me, ‘This is guaran- pert on pension lib- may be taken by some investment and (above) team at pension teed, it can’t go below a eration schemes and parties against CWM, scheme. bash certain level’.” the founder of Pension Spanish-based finan- March charity His money, and that of Life, has now launched cial advisory firm Conacross Spain and a fight to help get victinental Wealth Man- Many of them had others was put into tims’ money back. agement (CWM) folded transferred their pri- France, pensions high-risk ‘professional She is working alongUK vate obliteratlast month 15:36 16/06/2017 1 Untitled-1.pdf only’ assets, it side pension trustees ing many heartbroken through the company, investor has been claimed. Trafalgar International based out of headquarBrits’ life savings. and Momentum Pen- ters in Alicante, and its sions. executives. “People are terribly Both the office in Javea distressed,” Granada- and the website have based Brooks told the recently shut. Olive Press. “They have When the Olive Press lost large amounts of spoke to boss Kirby he denied their retirement sav- ‘definitively’ ings.” responsibility over the She added: “Some of crash. “I have lost my these people are going world,” he said. A close associate of Kirby’s told the Olive Press former CWM staff were all ‘very upset’. “It is still quite raw for them, and they are working out what to do next,” he said.
Expats lose millions in life savings through failed investment scheme
e Lions Threpub Best English Pub in Palma Great food Live Music Every Night from 12am
20 Find out more on page XX
Opinion Page 6
Ave de Gabriel Roca 4, Palma
www.theolivepress.com
Issue 28
DREAMY: Period home restored
Could this plastic masterpiece win a top European architecture award?
BEST
in Spain
(Free or paid for)
Power grab
SPAIN’S PP party has set out audacious plans for a power grab to take back control from Valencia and the other autonomous regions. Leader Pablo Casado announced his commitment to strengthen the central government’s role in the run up to the national elections in a fortnight. He insisted that such a move would prevent corruption and lead to a drop in taxes. It comes as the party attempts to see off the threat from an insurgent Vox Party, whose leader has described the autonomous parliaments as the ‘cancer of Spain’. Under the plan, the PP wants to increase resources for regional government delegations and paralyse any further transfer of power to the regions.
Supremacy
Casado insisted the move would see Spain being administered ‘more effectively’. The election hopeful stated that his party would carry out a sweeping review of how the regional authorities operate looking at ‘efficiency and equity.’ Spain’s quasi-federal political system of ‘autonomous states’ was added to the constitution in 1978. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, whose party drafted the constitution, strongly opposed the plan, insisting the PSOE would defend ‘tooth and nail’ the principal of regional self-government.
FACE
2017.
FREE Vol. 1 Issue 13 www.theo
However, he added ‘at the very least, data suggests that the Spanish property continued to growthe last year.’ Mortgage lending to home buyers meanwhile was up 6.1% in January to 19,390 new loans, according to the Association of Spanish Notaries. The average new loan made in January an increase of 0.9% in a year. As long had a value of €135,616, residential acquisitions continues to as mortgage lending for increase, as it has done for the last few years, the Spanish property market is set to grow.
REuse REduce cycle
use recycled paper
AGE 6
EXCLUSIVE By Joe Duggan
peril SPECIALIZING IN: CRIMINAL LAW CIVIL LAW
C
M
BANKING (FLOOR CLAUSE) FAMILY LAW
Y
CM
MY
A PALMA thief is facing 18 months in jail for stealingCY a leg of ham. CMY Prosecutors are requesting the lengthy term for taking K the eight kilogram leg of 'Cinco Jotas' ¡ jamon from a shop in the capital. The Iberico ham is valued at €685, and has yet to be recovered.
failed
VE Duggan
S of Brite battling their penlosing up to in a failed investment
sed finanfirm Conlth ManWM) folded obliterat-
e-mail: advocat1@demicco.es mobile number: 636 307 533 WWW.DEMICCO.CH
OFF TO OZ: Boss Kirby and (above) team at March charity bash
Many of them had transferred their private UK pensions 1 16/06/2017 artbroken through15:36 the company, vings.
led-1.pdf
whose boss Darren Kir- It is believed at least by has now allegedly 300 of CWM’s 900 clients have had their moved to Australia. pots One deciCosta-del-Sol- pension based expat told the mated, with victims to end up back in BritOlive Press he sunk shocked to later dis- ain on benefits.” £59,000 through cover the value of their “I have nothing but CWM, only realising he investments had plum- praise for Tony Barnett had lost £39,000 when meted dramatically. [Trafalgar MD] and his pension trustees However, a source Stewart Davies [Moclose to the case insent a statement. mentum chef execu“I couldn’t believe it. I sisted: ‘There are still tive]. They have been have lost thousands of many customers who magnificent in trypounds,” revealed the are happy with their ing to recoup people’s victim, asking to re- pension portfolio.’ A n d a l u c i a - b a s e d money.” main anonymous. The Olive Press un“The adviser kept tell- tax specialist Angie derstands it is highly ing me, ‘This is guaran- Brooks, a leading ex- possible legal action teed, it can’t go below a pert on pension lib- may be taken by some eration schemes and certain level’.” His money, and that of the founder of Pension parties against CWM, others across Spain and Life, has now launched France, was put into a fight to help get vichigh-risk ‘professional tims’ money back. investor only’ assets, it She is working alongside pension trustees has been claimed. Trafalgar International and Momentum Pen- based out of headquarters in Alicante, and its sions. “People are terribly executives. distressed,” Granada- Both the office in Javea based Brooks told the and the website have Olive Press. “They have recently shut. lost large amounts of When the Olive Press their retirement sav- spoke to boss Kirby he ‘definitively’ ings.” denied She added: “Some of responsibility over the these people are going crash. “I have lost my world,” he said. A close associate of Kirby’s told the Olive Press former CWM staff were all ‘very upset’. “It is still quite raw for them, and they are working out what to do next,” he said.
e Lions Threpub
in Palma Great food Live Music Every Night from 12am
HOW WE TOLD IT: Our 2017 reports 8 Find out more on page XX
As Spain celebrates Hispania the Olive Pre runs a rule over Columb
SEE PAGE 10
lose s in ngs
Th
Ave de Gabriel Roca 4, Palma
how CWM abruptly folded in 2017, losing hundreds of expats’ life savings in the process. The firm, which was based out of the Marriott Hotel, in Denia, had ‘eight to ten’ telesales staff and clients scattered around Europe, revealed a
See pages 26-29
Press, CWM was paid insurance commission for selling by two Cybonds and investments firms, between prus-based financial 2017. October 2015 and September statement from A January 2019 revealed Spain’s financial regulator were sold in insurance bonds breach of the law. that this money What is certain is for its key funded a ‘lavish lifestyle’ who were players Kirby and Smart, from 2011 in a relationship together to former to March 2017, according staff members.
971 706 972 in.com
’ve getting d for ies. SCO sted llorca
FIND OUT WHY INSIDE
‘worrying’ signing of blank sheets
BRITISH expats who lost up to €20 million in a failed pension advisory firm believe their Fight signatures may have been photocopied onto investment docuGiven the whole extradition ments. Brits, most living process can take up to 60 Around 300 battling to retrieve days, it means he may have in Spain, are Alicante-based to run his entire election their funds after Wealth Mancampaign for the Catalan firm Continental folded in Sepme they knew what they were European Democratic Party agement (CWM)reported in the doing.” tember, as first from Belgium. He added: “I believe some of ago. His party wants him to fight Olive Press a monthleft for Austhe investments were made for continued leadership of Boss Darren Kirby without my knowledge. I think the closure of the regional parliament in tralia following main Javea ofthat is the case because I do not the company’s the December 21 elections. recall signing sheets for all the has gone Puigdemont denied he had fices. investments I had.” spread across need co fled to Brussels to avoid jus- Victims, who are An email, seen by the Olive as in Ibiza, Malback on tr tice but that he left because Spain, as well Press, shows CWM asking a cliFrance and “But som the Spanish government was lorca, Portugal, ent to sign and return a blank illegal practices have lost preparing a ‘wave of oppres- Turkey, fear dealing instruction. to sign blank thing an sion and violence’ against after being asked Another British expat, 55, who dealing instructions. have en separatists. is trying to recover around pots were then live on. “I’m absolutely convinced Their pension €200,000, said some pensionassets tired vict that the state was preparing invested in high-risk ers ‘have lost everything’. to pay out large has €50 a harsh wave of repression which promised “My paper work that I sent from €4 for which we would have all commissions. has been altered, my risk level pensioner Andaluci been held responsible,” he One 69-year-old was changed from ‘medium’ to told the Olive Press he lost lawyer said yesterday. ‘high’ and my dealing instructransferring Flores “The Spanish state is com- €210,000 after stating he tions have been photocopied BOSS: Kirby now in firm mitting a brutal repression… €470,000 despite repeatedly for buying and sellaversion re are Australia if we don’t battle repression had a ‘low to medium ing assets I didn’t authorise,” investment. ing som together, the Spanish state to risk’ attitude to you sign this he said. he said. “I was asked, ‘Can victims may win this fight.” have been looking “I still have some money left We will fill in the “They should vestmen 15:36 In a show of support to the blank form. 16/06/2017 1 but they were just and I am still young enough to out for me Untitled-1.pdf trusting they deposed president, around details.’ I did thatbest interests,” feathering their own nests. To get compensation, but my fund 200 Catalan pro-indepen- would act in my dence mayors travelled to Brussels on Tuesday to stage a rally.
ning to Alicante last year. “Darren has been sent a Burofax which he didn’t sign for, so the court will now have to pursue him in other ways,” a source said. “A judge is dealing with this and it’s under legal review,” he added. “We understand he is currently in
by British couple in Spain
WOAH: Emerging from the rock, this stunning home in Valencia is trademark Fran Silvestre, a Spanish architect who is continuing to make his mark in the architectural world. See Fran-tastic page VI
ROCK STEADY
BEST
971 706 972
We use recyc
CATALUNYA’S leader has vowe from abroad. It came after mont handed h Belgian police w pean arrest warr sued. He and four other politicians are accused on charges of rebellion, sedition, misuse of public funds, disobedience and breach of trust. A judge in Belgium now has up to two weeks to decide if they will extradite the group to Spain.
Should have legged it
T
ew quality homes since 1958
BEST
REuse REduce REcyc
Govt exile
Cont
HE average property price in Spain has grown for Prices two consecutive years for the first time rise for two consecutive years, The national average house price rose in a decade. from between while mortgage values continue to 3.9% to 8.4%, according to grow Along the Mediterranean coasts andvarious sources. on the islands, where Balearic Islands. most foreigners buy, the average price hike has been 4.06%, ac- “Prices have cording to Tinsa, Spain’s leading property been appraisal company. but nothing like rising most years since the recovery began, But the figures have mostly not yet they did in the boom years, during the long six year recession, made up for the big drops enough to claw back the ground lost in theand nowhere near with the exception of the respected bust,” explained analyst Mark Stucklin, of Spanish Property Insight.
See Property Magazine inside
Judge set to take further steps after expat boss of suspect investment company fails to turn up at court
New quality homes since 1958
EXCLUSIVE By Joshua Parfitt
court.
court on March 26. According to Olive Press b
Pointing the way to two great Easter travel excursions from the hills of Javea to the wilds of Galicia
NOTORIOUS: Disgraced Smart businesswoman Jody scandal accused in financial
seeking crimthree British claimants are fraud, fake inal charges for aggravatedto a criminal accounting and belonging
organisation. into losses’. concern bungled house huge sums ‘without falling that doz- The complaints unpaid loans and failed Worse, it comes as it emerges claimand penni- transactions, investments that lost the ens of victims left destitute firm are suing pension them. less by the Denia-basedpartner Darren ants over €1million between Davison, tragSmart and her former One of the victims, Mark July this year aged 59, in Kirby. the courts, ically died, In the first case to reach
Find out more on page XX 20
Best English Pub in Palma Great food Live Music Every Night from 12am
Ave de Gabriel Roca 4, Palma
Opinion Page 6
day they just shut the door,” she said, asking not to be named. Victims had raised fears about being asked to sign blank dealing instructions and their pensions being invested in high-risk assets which paid large commissions. One pensioner based on the Costa Blanca told the Olive Press he lost €210,000 after transferring €470,000 despite stating he had a low to medium risk attitude. “I was asked, ‘Can you sign this blank form. We will fill in the details.’ I did that trusting they would act in my best interests,” he said. “They should have been looking out for me and they were just feathering their own nests. To me they knew what they were doing.” Lawyer Antonio Flores, whose firm Lawbird is representing a number of victims, said signing blank investment sheets was ‘very worrying’. “This negates the very essence of financial advisory services,”said Flo-
NO SHOW: Darren Kirby
res. “It is a blank cheque to invest wherever, whenever. “It is very worrying as they were investing clients’ money in highly risky investments as well as dubious funds just because they paid the higher commissions.” He added that losses sustained by investors should however, be recoverable as the investments that failed to perform, or went bust, were linked to life insurance policies. When the Olive Press finally got hold of Kirby in October 2017, he denied all responsibility. “I have lost my world,” he said.
Are you a victim or former staff member? Do you know more about the case? Contact the Olive Press at newsdesk@theolivepress.es
Tel. (+34) 96 649 18 29 info@hispaniahomes.es www.hispaniahomes.co.uk
HOW TO SELL YOUR PROPERTY QUICKER AND BETTER
Want to sell your property? Ask here for our VENDORS GUIDE
SALES & RENTALS SPECIALISTS
and get the most success in your task
Certified Residential Specialist The Proven Path to Success
Moriara•Calpe•Jalon•Javea•Denia•Altea
96 649 1883 www.moraira-hamiltons.net
Avda. Madrid, 24, 03724 Moraira - Alicante
UK BASED
TRAVEL INSURANCE for Spanish residents
www.globelink.co.uk
96 626 5000 +44 (0) 1353 699082
2017 collapse after CWM’s September from initial left him with just €22,000 ₤800,000 investments of more than (approx €900,000). with depresDavison was diagnosedcollapse, before sion just weeks after the and developturning to alcohol abuse to a video ing type-2 diabetes, according shot just before his death. lesions and His body, covered with for up to sores, had lain undiscoveredheat at his a week in the mid-summer Sanet. in home what had been “Mark died as a result of a feldone to him,” Timothy Benjamin, Press. Olive the low claimant, told the daylight “By the end he didn’t want
to appear.” felt ‘ashamed’ Benjamin, 67, likewise private penafter he lost his €250,000 into ‘risky’ sion, reinvested by CWM investments, via QROPS. he told the In his official testimony ₤325,000 court how he had transferreda property (€375,000 approx) from the firm was sale to CWM on the basis Pego. investing it in a villa in Monte₤200,000 But court papers revealed account of went directly to the bank Continues on Page
2
Tel. (+34) 96 649 18 29 info@hispaniahomes.es www.hispaniahomes.co.uk
UK BASED
PARTNERING OWNERS FOR OVER 20 YEARS
Voted
paper in Spain
FREE Vol. 1 Issue 13 www.theolivepress.es October 12th - October
They’ve been getting stoned for centuries. Now UNESCO is interested in Mallorca
walls. SEE PAGE 6
SPAIN’S prime minister has accused Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont of causing ‘confusion’ after signing a declaration of independence. Mariano Rajoy demanded he clarify if he had really declared independence following Tuesday’s nail biting address to the Catalan parliament. If so, Rajoy insisted he could trigger Article 155 of Spain’s constitution to allow Madrid to take direct control of Catalunya. “There is an urgent need to put an end to the situation that Catalunya is going through - to
lifestyle the Olive Law breaking forIn lavish documents seen by €3,391,873 of
Specialists in Luxury Villas Holiday Rentals and Sales
www.vacationvillasspain.com
New quality homes since 1958
971 706 972 taylorwimpeyspain.com
BACKING DOWN: Carles
Confusion reigns
HOW TO SELL YOUR PROPERTY QUICKER AND BETTER
Want to sell your property? Ask here for our VENDORS GUIDE
and get the most success in your task
Certified Residential Specialist
SALES & RENTALS SPECIALISTS
The Proven Path to Success
Moriara•Calpe•Jalon•Javea•Denia•Altea
96 626 5000 +44 (0) 1353 699082
1883 96 649 amiltons.net www.moraira-h
Avda. Madrid, 24, 03724
Moraira - Alicante
Angie Brooks, a pension expert, who the Olive Press has worked alongside to expose the decade-long fraud, said she was ‘delighted’ at the judgment. “It’s great news, I’m happier than I’ve been in seven years,” said Brooks, who helped to guide the long complicated class action. “It’s been a seven-year battle, back and forth to the court in Alicante from my home in Granada and it’s cost me a fortune in legal fees. “At least some justice has been done and she will have to cough up nearly half a million euros in damages and fees.” She continued: “Incredibly, Darren Kirby has, so far, managed to get off as he was not a director or a GLOBE TROTTER: shareholder in the company.” But her travels A separate court in Denia ruled have been ended by there was ‘insufficient evidence’ a Spanish judge, to prosecute four other senior while (left) a front figures of CWM in a decision that page from 2020 devastated the victims in 2023. “It was complicated and the judge couldn’t get her head around it and threw the case out,” explained Brooks. “But now we are bringing a much bigger, stronger case against them.” She continued: “We will send out a shuddering message to the pension industry.” The Olive Press is aware of other civil cases meanwhile being brought in the Isle of Man. Opinion Page 6
MORAIRA PLUMBING HEATING PLUMBING & AIR CONDITIONING SPECIALISTS
ALL YOUR LEGAL ISSUES DEALT WITH!
Here to help with your life in Spain including wills, residency, tax returns, buying and selling property We speak your language! Centro Comercial Arenal, Avenida del Pla 126, Office 217, Javea 03730 tel: 966 943 219 www.mylawyerinspain.com
Gree Pular 09/25 500 to 3.25 Kw A+++ Gas r32 gas refridgerent 4 years manufacturers warranty SPECIAL WiFi included OFFER Supplied and installed standard installation
565€ (plus IVA) SOLAR ELECTRIC ENERGY NOW BEING INSTALLED
Air Conditioning | Bathroom Fitting Gas and Oil Central Heating | Electrics Certification & Inspection | Pool | Solar Energy
tel: +34 620 523 613 / +34 966 498 993 email: info@morairaph.com Calle Mulhalcen 3, Ctra Moraira de Calpe 142b, Moraira Teulada 03724, Alicante New location further down the road towards Moraira town centre, next to Gemisant & Kostas Restaurant
www.morairaph.com
SALES & RENTALS SPECIALISTS Moriara•Calpe•Jalon•Javea•Denia•Altea
96 649 1883 www.moraira-hamiltons.net
YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENCY FOR CALPE, BENISSA, MORAIRA AND REGION
CREDIT: Instagram
SHE was best friends with TV star Denise van Outen and had more shoes than notorious Filipino first lady Imelda Marcos. But the glamorous life of fashion designer Jody Smart has come to an abrupt end afEXCLUSIVE ter she was found guilty of fraud in Spain. By Jon Clarke & Smart - aka Jodie Pearson - will now swap Walter Finch first-class trips to New York’s fashion week for a Spanish jail cell for the next three-and-a-half years. Darren Kirby, as being in on the scheme. An Alicante Court ruled she was behind While Smart was involved with CWM part of the notorious €35 million Contiwhen it collapsed in 2017, Kirby was the nental Wealth Management (CWM) swinsole administrator and was thought to be dle and must pay €370,000 to two victims. the mastermind. Judge Francisco Javier Guirau also found Smart, who describes herself on Instaher guilty of conning a third victim, Mark gram as a ‘fashion deDavidson, out of €930,000, howevsigner, wellness expert, er tragically he philanthropist, wedding passed away beVE LI O planner’, also runs a sucfore the verdict SS RE P cessful beach club, Oceawas reached. na, in Benissa. Smart told the Victims claim she foundOlive Press the ed her fashion label off frauds were ‘a conthe back of the many sequence of loans people she scammed between individuout of their life savings als, in which my… through the CWM insignature does not vestment scheme. appear.’ On Instagram she Her lawyer added it flaunts her glamorous is ‘uncertain she will lifestyle on foreign trips end up in prison’ as to Greece, Thailand and Venice. he launches an appeal this week. The victims meanwhile - at least one who The court however, established that Smart VENDORS was behind the fraud of one victim ofGUID Ecommitted suicide after losing his life savings - have had to wait nearly a decade for €300,000 under the false pretence of purjustice after a series of delays. chasing a property. But, the sentence, issued by Alicante’s AuAlong with colleague Alan Gorringe, who diencia Provincial court, is being seen as a has since died, Smart also defrauded anmassive victory for the victims and could other victim of €70,000 through a sham now open the floodgates to many more. loan agreement. Incredibly, at least half a dozen other seThe court ruled Smart was the sole adminnior CWM figures have so far managed to istrator of Continental Wealth Trust, while evade justice. the court also named her then-husband,
areacostablanca.com 966 112 428