The hidden past of the billionaire family who hosted Anthony Albanese at their Point Piper mansion has now been revealed. (Reuters\/Domain)<\/p>\n
The fortune of Australian billionaire Phillip Lee, whose son recently hosted a Labor fundraising dinner attended by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, has been linked to major corruption scandals involving members of his family in China, an ABC investigation has found.<\/p>\n
The ABC can reveal Mr Lee is the son-in-law of a disgraced Chinese transport official who steered expressway construction contracts at an inflated price in southern China's Guangdong province to Mr Lee's company in the 1990s.<\/p>\n
A Chinese court in 2005 found the project cost was inflated by more than 100 million yuan ($21 million), pushing the total price tag to more than 180 million yuan ($37.6 million), at the expense of the public purse.<\/p>\n
Mr Lee has not been accused of any wrongdoing in relation to his father-in-law's actions.<\/p>\n
The revelation comes as scrutiny intensifies over the family's wealth after Mr Lee's 25-year-old son, Felix, hosted Mr Albanese, former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, and bank executives at the family's Point Piper mansion, known as Mandalay, last month.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The luxury property was purchased outright by Phillip Lee and his wife, Shi Xiaobei, for $39.9 million in 2015.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The dining area inside the Point Piper mansion where Mr Albanese was hosted for an exclusive dinner. (Domain)<\/p>\n
The three-level European-style mansion offered Mr Albanese panoramic views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House from its marble balcony, but there was a problem.<\/p>\n
The Sydney mansion has previously been the subject of asset-freezing orders, after the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) pursued the couple over claims of more than $278 million in unpaid tax in 2021.<\/p>\n
The ATO obtained court orders freezing the couple's Australian assets.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The orders covered 17 residential, commercial and rural properties, Star City Casino accounts and luxury vehicles including a Bentley, a Rolls-Royce Ghost and a Porsche Cayenne.<\/p>\n
The Lee family denied any wrongdoing and later reached a settlement with the ATO for an unknown sum.<\/p>\n
Under that settlement, a Commonwealth charge remains registered over their properties, including Mandalay, until the debt is repaid in full.<\/p>\n
The Lee family residence, Mandalay, has sweeping views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House. (Realestate.com.au)<\/p>\n