On Tuesday night, A Current Affair exposed alleged “international conwoman” Emese Fayk, 28, for not paying Nine for the house that she won in The Block finale auction. Since the episode aired, Fayk has posted 19 stories on Instagram in defence of herself, and now we have two sides to the story, and a lot of claims circling around.
In their report, ACA alleged that Fayk has a ‘trail’ of missing payments across the globe, while in her Instagram stories, Fayk claims to have been stalked and threatened for money from abusive individuals, as well as enduring great difficulty in getting Nine what they are owed.
So, without further ado, here’s everything we know so far about this scandal, and Emese Fayk, broken down in a way that’s a lot easier to digest.
Who Is Emese Fayk?
Hungarian-born Emese Fayk, 28, first appeared on The Block in the final episode, where she won the bid on Queensland couple Jimmy and Tam Wilkin‘s 1950s-inspired house with a huge $4.256 million offer.
She beat out Danny Wallis, that lunatic buyer who bought three houses throughout the finale. With her massive bid, Jimmy and Tam were declared the winners.
She apparently owns her own company named Anakin, which is a consultancy firm that has clients from Apple and the United Nations. They specialise in “counterterrorism, peacekeeping and cybersecurity”, and this role has lead to Fayk speaking for TED.
She also allegedly has a BSc in Behaviour Sciences and a BA in Photography, which is public information on her LinkedIn.
So What’s The Fuss About?
Well, Jimmy and Tam haven’t received their money, and ACA launched a story looking into just why.
ACA reported that Nine has received bank statements that act as proof of payment, but are yet to receive money from Fayk. Under Victorian laws, false bids are illegal, and can result in hefty fines.
The settlement period has ended, and Fayk is now overdue to pay what she owes.
“We’ve pretty much been conned…”
The Block Scandal – Tonight 7.00. #9ACA pic.twitter.com/McrG3C4dI9— A Current Affair (@ACurrentAffair9) December 22, 2020
So What Was Uncovered In The ACA Investigation?
A few things came out in the investigation that claimed Fayk had a history of not paying people, and had allegedly lied about her university credentials.
In the episode, it is revealed that the University of West London and the Columbia University has no record of her attendance. There are no records of Fayk undertaking a PhD. ACA also tried to reach out to Apple and the United Nations to back up claims that her consultancy firm works with them but did not get a response.
An alleged former partner of Fayk’s from the UK named Simon spoke to ACA, alleging that she has stolen money from himself and others.
“She’s stolen money from people like myself (£15,000 / A$26,650) and many others. When I met her she was pretending to be a cybersecurity expert and working for the United Nations,” he told ACA.
“When I started to chase her with our National Crime Agency in the UK she intimidated and lied about me online.
“She set about threatening me with others’ help and moved on to New York to do the same to another unsuspecting and trusting man.”
Apparently, Fayk had been sending Simon doctored bank statements, which is similar to what has allegedly happened to Nine with The Block payments.
Another unnamed ex, who provided Whatsapp text receipts, claimed that Fajk had also handed over doctored statements for the transfer of £50,000 (A$88,000).
On top of all of this, ACA also uncovered that Mavi Surf Hotel in Costa Rica has allegedly been chasing Fayk over unpaid bills.
What Did Fayk Claim In Her Instagram Stories?
Here’s where stuff gets a lot more serious.
There were 19 Instagram stories all up, and we covered in detail what they all alleged in this article here, which you can check out.
In summary, Fayk claimed that one of the men featured on ACA who posit that she has stolen money has been stalking her for two years, and provided proof of intimidating emails sent her way. It can only be assumed that the man was the unnamed source, as Fayk’s receipts show a man named Matthew Hutton.
(Instagram / @_wampire)
She also alleges that ACA did not reach out for further contact or evidence of claims beyond the phone call that was aired at the end of the episode, and that she is more than happy to provide proof of anything that they need.
“I provided everything I was asked. Yet absolutely none of it was considered or used. I reached out, I tried to make this a conversation and nothing,” wrote Fayk in a Facebook post.
“This was not informative. This was not documentary. This was absolute fiction and I’m not gonna let you run with this shit! It was one-sided, sensationalist, malicious and absolutely pre-meditated, as I knew exactly when you were trying to dig and I reached out. No one bothered to talk to me while this was in the making for a month.”
Finally, the main concern was also addressed. Where is the money?
Where Is The Money?
Well, via Instagram Emese Fayk alleged that throughout multiple steps in the process, she was handed documents late and had multiple questions unanswered.
“I didn’t get really important pieces of info until they were overdue, and whenever I had an issue or a question, it took days to get an answer, and often it was condescending,” she wrote.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJF4SuSDlsx/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
“Mistake number one: I went with a conveyancer instead of a solicitor and he made me work out my own stamp duty,” she said in a video posted to her Insta story.
“Mistake number two: Going with his super slow process where I had to chase things up constantly and everything just took too long, and I didn’t know the process myself.”
The biggest receipt, however, was a screenshot from PEXA of a deposit form that was given from the seller of the house. The form implies that it was generated on the 17th of December, despite the due date being the 16th.
“Something is due by x date, I get it a day later… funds for settlement were due in PEXA’s account by the 16th. I got the form on the 17th, literally at 5 pm… literally less than 24h before the settlement date,” she wrote to Facebook.
“Like I’m not responsible for other people not doing their job. I’m responsible for not jumping ship fast enough. And I’m going to own that bit.”
This form could of course be doctored as well, but there is no way to prove it just yet.
(Instagram / @_wampire)
Finally, Emese Fayk finished her Instagram stories with a claim that nobody who was scamming individuals would just blindly go on television.
“I don’t think anyone would go [to the auction] if they didn’t know that they can buy a house, just because everyone knows the publicity that comes with this,” she said.
So… What Now?
Well, the house will be going back up on auction, and the original contract is now void.
Nine will be handing over what they now to authorities, and the rest is in the hands of the law.
There’s surely more to come from this, but now, at least you’re up to speed on absolutely everything.
