Setting the Record Straight

SCONE.COM.AU recently published an article The Case For Rezoning Industrial, in which we gave who we thought was the owner of two blocks in Phillip Street the opportunity to explain their plans for rezoning, we apologise to our readers, as we have now been made aware that the person we interviewed was not the owner of the land.

Hamish Le Poer Trench, while standing on the blocks in Phillip Street being interviewed, stated “I bought these blocks”, however sources have since informed us that Mr Le Poer Trench is bankrupt and they questioned how he was able to purchase the blocks.

After further investigation we can confirm Mr Le Poer Trench was declared bankrupt in the Federal Circuit Court Brisbane on May 10, 2017, on application of the National Australia Bank Ltd.

As an undischarged bankrupt, any assets owned by a person who is bankrupt can be available to the trustee and creditors for three years and we understand why our readers may have questioned the ownership of the land.

We can further confirm, the two blocks Mr Le Poer Trench was referring to as his property in Phillip Street, are in fact owned by his partner Ewa Katarzyna Le Poer Trench, who purchased the blocks for $120,000 just five months after he went bankrupt.

To ensure editorial accuracy scone.com.au provided a link to the story for Mr Le Poer Trench to review and no changes were requested including the quote “I bought the blocks” or our second paragraph, which stated, “the other two blocks in Phillip Street are owned by Mr Le Poer Trench.”

Mr Le Poer Trench also went on the record to say the business he owned and proposed to occupy on the land if rezoned industrial was Scone Diesel and Mechanical, which is not the case.

As an undischarged bankrupt the law states people must trade under a business name, which includes their own name and if they trade under another name that doesn’t include their name, they must disclose they are bankrupt.

Scone Diesel and Mechanical was cancelled as a business name in 2018.

A person who is declared bankrupt is not allowed to be a director of a company or manage a company without permission from the court.

The company Scone Diesel Pty Ltd does trade and is owned by his partner Ewa Katarzyna Le Poer Trench.

scone.com.au published the story and information from Mr Le Poer Trench in the belief that Mr Le Poer Trench was the owner of the property in question and published quotes from him stating as such.

We apologise to our readers if they feel misled and now that we have been made aware of the facts of land and business ownership, we wanted to set the record straight. 

If our readers do question the accuracy of any of our stories, we always encourage them to contact us so that we can ensure what we are publishing is correct and any amendments are made immediately. 

See related stories:

• Previous Phillip Street Owners Glad to be Gone – August 6, 2019
• Burton’s Weigh in on Rezoning – August 5, 2019
• WATCH: A Current Affair Story on Phillip Street – August 4, 2019
• Rezoning Not Fair Business Play – August 2, 2019
• The Case for Rezoning Industrial – July 31, 2019
• A Current Affair Backs Betty – July 30, 2019
• Residents Rally to Oppose Rezoning – July 23, 2019