As well, the Telstra records for (02) 9708 4924 indicate a number of calls to Thailand.
74 As noted earlier, on 5 March 1999, Mr Dannoun applied for a private post office box, giving as his telephone number the number 0414 270 156.
75 Telstra records for the importer's mobile 0415 140 955 indicate frequent calls to:
· 0414 270 156 (Mr Dannoun's mobile);
· (02) 9709 8297 (subscriber not identified - see below).
76 The subscriber to the importer's mobile telephone number 0415 140 955 was recorded as "Mr Joshua Smith, Anne Street, Campbell NSW 2022". The evidence showed that that name and address did not exist.
77 On 22 March 2001 Ms Stiel received a telephone call from a person who identified himself as Mohamed Dannoun and whose voice she recognised as that of Mr Dannoun. The telephone number which was displayed on the caller identification screen of her telephone during that call was the telephone number 9709 8297. Although the evidence does not identify the subscriber to that telephone service, as noted above, frequent telephone calls were made to it from the supposed importer's telephone/fax number and mobile number, and the evidence shows that Mr Dannoun at least had access to it.
78 There is evidence that Ms Diab and Mr Haddad have been involved in importing counterfeit Sony "Playstation" games in the past.
79 On 8 November 1999 307 CD-ROMs were seized by the ACS. The Notice of Seizure to Objector issued by the ACS on the same date identified "the designated owner" as "Mr Haddad of 4/14 Gordon St, Bankstown NSW 2200". As noted earlier, Unit 4, 14 Gordon St, Bankstown is Ms Diab's address. Indeed, Ms Diab gave the Gordon Street address in her defence. Mr Haddad has declared his address to be at 31/52 Robertson Rd, Bass Hill NSW. In fact Mr Haddad does not reside at Robertson Rd, Bass Hill. Further, Australian electoral records reveal Mr Dannoun and Mr Haddad as residing at 41 Banksia Road, Greenacre.
80 On 16 November 1999 Allens wrote a letter of demand to Mr Haddad at 4/14 Gordon Street, Bankstown, seeking undertakings. An undertaking was returned signed by "A. Haddad", with "AHMAD HADDAD" printed underneath the signature, and dated 30 November 1999. In oral evidence, Mr Dannoun denied signing "A. Haddad" and said that Mr Haddad had signed it himself. Mr Dannoun admitted writing "AHMAD HADDAD" and the date. Mr Haddad stated in cross-examination that the signature was in his handwriting, but could not explain why this signature differed from his signature on his statutory declaration admitted into evidence in this proceeding.
81 On 31 January 2000 the ACS issued a Notice of Seizure to Objector in respect of twenty four packs of counterfeit Sony CD-ROMs imported by "Nabil Haddad of 14A Chapel Street, Bankstown NSW 2200". As noted above, that is the address of Mr Dannoun's "Static Clothing" business.
82 On 18 October 2000 the ACS issued a Notice of Seizure to Objector in respect of 450 counterfeit Sony CD-ROMs imported by "Janan Micaty of 91 Broadarrow Road, Narwee NSW 2209'. Allens wrote a letter of demand [oddly, it bears the date 16 October 2000] to "Mr/Ms Janan Micaty" at that address, seeking undertakings. An undertaking was returned signed by "Janan Micaty" and dated 18 October 2000. In cross-examination Ms Diab stated that the handwriting was not hers and denied that she was in fact "Janan Micaty".
83 An on-line electoral roll search in respect of "91 Broadarrow Road, Narwee 2209 NSW" revealed the residents as Ahmad Diab, Fatat Diab, Mohamed Diab and Moussa Diab. A Land Titles database search in respect of 91 Broadarrow Road, Beverley Hills 2209 (the suburbs "Narwee" and "Beverley Hills" both have the same postcode) revealed the owners as Mohamad Diab and Fatat Diab.
84 I found the evidence of all three respondents totally unreliable and would not accept the evidence of any of them, unless corroborated by other evidence, that is to say, other evidence not being the testimony of either of the other two respondents.
85 Mr Haddad's story was that he imported thirty-six scooters, using the false name "Allen Ramzy" in order to avoid trouble in relation to his pension. He said Ms Diab recommended Summit as a customs broker and he asked her to act as interpreter and translator because he was not fluent in English. Mr Haddad said that the Thai supplier of the scooters offered to include computer games, to which he (Mr Haddad) agreed. In response to questioning by me, Mr Haddad said that the number agreed upon was about 1,000 - 1,200 and the price agreed was fifty cents each. (Mr Dannoun's testimony in a different context was to the effect that it was common knowledge that CD-ROM games priced so cheaply must be counterfeit.) However, when the invoice arrived, it did not refer to the computer games. According to Mr Haddad, Ms Diab told him, when the shipment was detained by the ACS, that the ACS must think there was something other than scooters in the consignment. Mr Haddad told her that he had not paid for the goods. According to Mr Haddad, when it emerged that there were counterfeit Sony CD-ROMs in the shipment, Ms Diab was very angry and said she wanted to have nothing to do with "PlayStation" games. Mr Haddad told her that if anyone should telephone inquiring for "Allen Ramzy", she must tell the inquirer that she knew of no such person. According to Mr Haddad, the next development was that Mr Dannoun telephoned him complaining that he (Mr Dannoun) and Ms Diab were being blamed for what Mr Haddad had done.
86 Mr Haddad said that a girlfriend, rather than Ms Diab, had assisted him by writing out documents in this proceeding which he had signed. When pressed as to the identity of the girlfriend, he said that he had several girlfriends. He said the one who assisted him was called "Linda" but that he did not know her surname or her address. He said that she had gone to Melbourne to live. Another girlfriend was a Thai woman who had proposed marriage to him but whose name he could not remember.
87 Ms Diab had similar failures of memory in relation to Ms Micaty. She agreed that she had lied to Mr Dwyer of Allens when telling him she knew nothing of "Allen Ramzy". She denied that she was "Janan Micaty" but could not assist as to Ms Micaty's whereabouts, notwithstanding that the woman was a family friend and that she (Ms Diab) had once signed for and picked up a letter addressed to her.
88 Ms Diab claimed in her defence that she was acting as translator between Mr Haddad and Summit; that she had "no idea" that there were computer games in the consignment addressed to "Allen Ramzy"; that she was "angry and shocked" when she learned that the consignment included such games; and that she had previously denied knowing anything of "Allen Ramzy" in order to help Mr Haddad because he owed money to "the suppliers".
89 I am satisfied that Ms Diab's defence in this proceeding is in her handwriting and I am also satisfied, contrary to her denial, that she printed "JANAN MICATY 18.10.00" and wrote the signature "Janan Micaty" on the undertaking on the last page of Allens' letter dated 16 October 2000. "JANAN" in "JANAN MICATY" is strikingly similar to "JANAN" in "JANAN DIAB" as admittedly written by Ms Diab. I am also satisfied that Ms Diab wrote for Mr Haddad his statutory declaration dated 28 April 2001 and his unsworn "affidavit" dated 15 June 2001. The way in which "JANAN DIAB" is written on both of those documents is strikingly similar to the way in which it is written in Ms Diab's defence.
90 Mr Dannoun denied that he was the importer "Allen Ramzy". He stated in his defence that he had "nothing to do with this proceeding" and that, as far as he was aware, Ms Diab was a mediator between Mr Haddad and Summit. Further, in an affidavit sworn by Mr Dannoun and filed in this proceeding, he stated that Mr Haddad was the sole importer of this consignment.
91 I am satisfied that, as he admitted under cross-examination, Mr Dannoun wrote the words and date:
"AHMAD HADDAD
30-11-99"
at the foot of the last page of Allens' letter dated 16 November 1999 to Mr Haddad. Mr Dannoun also admitted that he wrote the letter dated 19 December 2000 signed by "Allen Ramzy" and addressed to the ACS explaining that he had ordered thirty-six scooters and 1,240 CD-ROMs. I have not previously referred to this letter which was in fact as follows:
" 19-12-2000
TO AUSTRALiAN CUSTOM SERViCE
REF. 1M03501071M
IMPORT ALLEN RAMZI
I DO PLACE AN ORD. WITH THiS COMPANY IN THAiLAND FOR 36 SCOOTER AND 1240 COMPUTER DiSC. I DiD NOT SEND THEM ANY MONEY YET FOR THiS SHIPMENT. DUE THE GOOD I DiD NOT RECiEVED.
WHEN THEY SEND ME THE INVOiCE FOR THE SCOOTER I NOTES THER IS NO MANTiONIG ABOUT THE COMPUTER DiSC.
I RiNG THE SUPLiER IN THAiLAND MR SURRONG. HE WAS ON HOLiDAY TiLL NEXT WEEK. TiLL TODAY I FOUND OUT THE COMP. DiSC WAS INSiDE THE SCOOTER BOX.
I'M REALLY SORRY FOR THAT MiXED UP. AND ALSO THiS IS MY FiRST TiMe I IMPORT FROM THAiLAND. I DO HAVE A COPY OF THE INVOiCe FOR THE SCOOTER AND THE COMPUTER DiSC. BUT AS I SAiD I DiD NOT SEND THEM ANY MONEY FOR THAT SHiPMENT.
YOURS FAiTHFULLY
ALLEN RAMZY"
I am satisfied that Mr Dannoun also wrote, contrary to his denial, the letter faxed to Allens on 15 February 2001 in response to their letter of demand (see [72] above). I am also satisfied that Mr Dannoun wrote, again contrary to his denial, a letter dated 10 December 2000 from "Nood Surreng", the alleged consignor to "Allen Ramzy", which was as follows:
" 10-12-2000
ATT. Mr ALLEN RAMZY
THi IS INVOiCe FOR THE ORD. YOU GAVe Me ON The PhONe YeSTeRdAY.
36 SCOOTer AUD$14.00 eACH. 1240 COMPUTER disc MiXED 0.50 CeNTS AUD$620.00
TOTAL INVOiE FOR THiS ORD IS AUD.ONe THOUSANd ONE HUndred SiXTY FOUR DOLLARS.
PLeASE SENd ME CHEQUE WHEN YOU ReCiEVED THe GOODS.
BeST reGARd
Nood SURRENG"
As referred to in proceeding N 974 of 2000, Mr Dannoun has a distinctive practice in his handwriting of reverting from the capital letter "I" to a lower case "i". He also has a distinctive practice of reverting from a capital letter "E" to a lower case "e". Both of these distinctive practices are evident on an examination of the defence and affidavit filed in this proceeding alone, and both are evident in the documents referred to above which I have found were in fact written by Mr Dannoun.
92 In the result I am satisfied that all three respondents were involved in the importation and that relief should be granted against all three. I am satisfied that Mr Dannoun was the "master-mind" behind the arrangement and that he and his girlfriend, Ms Diab, agreed with Mr Haddad that Mr Haddad would be their scapegoat. Mr Haddad, was, however, a willing participant and was not in the least way imposed upon by the other two: he knew what he was doing.