Fatboy, the Executioner and the banned bookie linked by waterfront mansion
By Kate McClymont
Yowie Bay discount carpet seller Leo Lewin has gained quite a reputation for extending hospitality to alleged organised crime figures over the years.
Currently residing at Lewin’s waterfront mansion is Luke “Fatboy” Sparos, 42, who is on bail for attempted murder.
A previous tenant, Hamad “the Executioner” Assaad, was executed in 2016 outside a Georges Hall house owned by Lewin.
Assaad, who was believed to have been responsible for several murders, had the word “executioner” tattooed across his neck along with another tattoo: “The souls I have taken will never haunt me … only the ones I haven’t will”.
A few weeks after Hamad Assaad’s murder, his older brother, Tarek Assaad, who was also living in a Lewin-owned home and was employed at Lewin’s business Tyres for Less, was arrested and charged with possession of a Glock pistol and ammunition.
While awaiting trial, Tarek was bailed to stay at the Lewins’ Yowie Bay home. Following his release from jail, Tarek survived an assassination attempt.
Lewin, who according to ASIC records was born on January 31, 1951, in Poland, or Newcastle in 1953 or Maitland in 1961, lost his bookmaker’s licence in 2017.
It emerged at his unsuccessful appeal that Racing NSW informed Lewin that he was not a fit and proper person because of his alleged “demonstrated association with known violent criminals/persons of extreme ill repute”. Racing NSW also alleged Lewin had provided crime figures with employment, cars, carpet and houses to live in, and had been “offering accommodation at your family residence to a criminal on parole”.
Sparos’ bail conditions include that he can’t leave Lewin’s house unless Lewin is accompanying him, and that is only for court or medical emergencies. For anything else, Sparos has to get permission from the police.
Lewin had put up a $2 million surety for bail. Also offering bail of $100,000 was Elly Greenfield, 31.
Last week Sparos was unsuccessful in his bid to have his bail conditions changed. He’d argued his trial won’t start until June next year at the earliest and he’d been offered a job as “operations manager” at Unique Wedding Cars with an annual salary of $95,000. He was also planning to rent a $135,000-per-year apartment, for which his prospective employer was going to pay the “lion’s share”.
Unique Wedding Cars was owned by Lewin’s son Samuel but, when he was bankrupted in 2020, Greenfield took over.
The company is now called Unique Wedding Cars and Limousines and Greenfield is the sole director.
Last year, Greenfield was included on a list of alleged underworld figures with whom police wanted to prevent crime figure Mohamad “Almo” Alameddine associating.
Joining Greenfield on the list were Comanchero bikie bosses Tarek Zahed, 43, the gang’s national president, Allan Meehan, 36, and Mark Buddle, 39, who has since been charged with importing about $40 million worth of cocaine.
Also listed was Alen Moradian, who was murdered last month in Bondi Junction.
Moradian was a close associate of Sparos, the pair having served lengthy jail stints over “The Golden Gun” cocaine importation.
In opposing the variation of his bail conditions, police said they were concerned that Sparos could seek retribution over Moradian’s death.
Sparos is on bail over the attempted murder of Samer Marcus, who was left a quadriplegic after being shot eight times at his home in Denham Court in November 2020.
The court has heard that while Sparos was in jail in 2019 he was stabbed by Marcus, who is a member of DLASTHR (The Last Hour), an Assyrian criminal organisation.
During his application to change his bail conditions, the court was told that Marcus didn’t see his shooter but heard him say, “You f---ing dog. Remember me from f---ing gaol. This is payback, motherf---er”.
In opposing any changes to his bail conditions, the police said Sparos had recently been observed “dining and socialising with a number of persons with serious criminal background”.
Police also told the court that late last month Sparos had picked up the entire bill for 30 males dining at Verde restaurant in Darlinghurst and paid in cash.
Comment was sought from Lewin.
The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.