Aaron Salvestrin pleaded guilty to three charges at a Sydney court. Photo: File.
Former Griffith winemaker and businessman Aaron Salvestrin has pleaded guilty to two charges of dishonestly intending to obtain a gain and one charge of using a forged document to induce a public official to accept it as genuine.
The 31-year-old entered the guilty pleas at Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Tuesday (30 June).
The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP) withdrew 16 remaining charges of dishonestly intending to obtain a gain after accepting the guilty pleas to the three offences mentioned above.
Mr Salvestrin has been committed to the NSW District Court for sentencing.
A short administrative hearing has been listed for 3 August, when the District Court will deal with procedural matters before setting the case down for a sentencing hearing. Mr Salvestrin’s existing bail conditions were continued.
The criminal case follows civil court proceedings that concluded in March 2024, when the NSW Supreme Court ordered Mr Salvestrin to repay just over $8.4 million after his wine company, Sans Pareil Estate, went into liquidation. In the published decision, Justice Anthony McGrath ruled he had made “unreasonable director-related transactions” while running the business.
The Hanwood-based wine company, launched by Mr Salvestrin at the age of 23 in 2018, collapsed four years later with debts to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) estimated at $32 million.
A rare 2014 McLaren P1 supercar signed by Formula One star Daniel Ricciardo was sold for $1.47 million during the liquidation process, which recovered less than 15 per cent of the money owed.
Mr Salvestrin declared himself bankrupt seven days after the NSW Supreme Court ruling.
The former winemaker, once touted as a rising star of the industry, now lives in Sydney and will remain on bail under conditions previously imposed by the court.
At a previous court hearing in August 2025, Mr Salvestrin was granted bail on the condition he report daily to Dee Why Police Station between 8 am and 8 pm.
He was also ordered to surrender any passports to police, not apply for a passport or other travel document, and not enter any point of departure from Australia, including airports.
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