A wannabe professional golfer’s dreams of teeing off with the world’s best has hit the bunker after he admitted stealing exquisite Australian wine — including a staggering 39 bottles of top-shelf red Henschke Hill of Grace — from his employer. and selling them using his elderly father-in-law’s identity.
Trevor Payet, a father of two from Endeavour Hills, who featured on the Australian Amateur Ranking System, and had his name on the Riversdale Cup leaderboard, ripped off his workplace, Bam Logistics in Dandenong South, where he worked as transport co-ordinator when he wasn’t teeing off around Melbourne.
Payet roped in storeman and loader Delmate Taputoa to help him move stolen stock between September 2023 and December 2024.
Among the wines he stole was stash of fancy red Henschke Hill of Grace, which retails for between $950 and $1300 per bottle, champagne from historic French company Louis Roederer, and an unnamed bottle of wine so rare there are only two bottles of it in Australia.
Payet pleaded guilty in the County Court on Monday to dishonestly obtaining a financial advantage and Taputoa admitted one charge of theft.
Court documents stated that under Payet’s supervision, Taputoa collected stock and placed them in a ‘staging area’ before Payet placed a false label on them to make it look like a legitimate order.
The stolen wines were then delivered to Payet’s house and he paid Taputoa between $100 and $200 for each delivery.
Posing as his father-in-law, Payet sold the wines to Nick’s Wine Merchants and received $51,900 from the sale of 39 bottles of Henschke Hill of Grace, 18 single malt whisky and 51 bottles of Louis Roederer.
He pocketed a further $125,341 from Wickman’s Wine Auctions between November 2023 and August 2024.
In February 2024, Bam Logistics conducted a stocktake of all high value wines after it was notified that 63 bottles of Henschke Hill of Grace had been sold at auction through Wickman’s.
Bam Logistics considered the sale suspicious due to the limited stock of this wine, which is generally only sold in small quantities to select customers.
Payet’s lawyer Zarah Garde-Wilson submitted a community corrections order was within reach given his lack of priors, that he made full admissions and was motivated by financial gain.
She said Payet had dreamt of becoming a professional golfer and that he brought shame to his family through his offending.
Jessica Hotchkin, representing Taputoa, said his offending should be distinguished from Payet’s, her client worked as a pickpacker and had good prospects of rehabilitation.
Payet and Taputoa are on bail and will be sentenced on June 1.