The high-profile divorce between Sydney property magnate Mario Evangelo and his ex-wife Janelle has taken a dramatic turn, with their $9.5 million Crown Towers apartment now at the center of a legal dispute. Wealth management company Perpetual Corporate is seeking possession of the luxury Barangaroo residence, alleging that Janelle and the couple's daughter mortgaged it as security for a $6 million loan to Evangelo's company, Maneva Pty Ltd.
The luxury apartment, purchased for $9.5 million in 2021, is currently occupied by Janelle. According to Perpetual Corporate's Supreme Court filing, Maneva Pty Ltd, of which Evangelo is a director and shareholder, received the $6 million loan in October 2023, approximately six weeks before the couple separated. The loan reportedly defaulted in January 2025, with the company failing to make payments.
Perpetual claims the apartment was mortgaged as security, with Janelle and the couple's daughter acting as guarantors. Evangelo was also a guarantor but allegedly did not provide any security for his guarantee. Perpetual issued demands for repayment in March and May 2025, seeking over $6.2 million plus legal costs, and notified the parties of its right to take possession and sell the apartment.
In a cross-claim, Janelle argues that she signed the security documents under duress and due to Evangelo's undue influence. She claims she understood any borrowing would be short-term, for their mutual benefit, and would be repaid by Evangelo or Maneva. Janelle also contends that Evangelo arranged for their daughter to have 80% ownership of the apartment upon its purchase, an arrangement she claims she was unaware of or did not intend. She stated she used proceeds from another property she owned to purchase the apartment.
The apartment is also part of the marital asset pool being contested in their property settlement. Janelle has sought to combine the Supreme Court proceedings with the property settlement. Court documents indicate Evangelo was ordered to repay the loan and interest himself, but allegedly has not done so, while Janelle has been using funds from a trust to manage payments.
The contentious separation between Evangelo, CEO of the $300 million Panthera property empire, and Janelle, whom he married for a second time in 2018, began in November 2023. The dispute escalated in May when Evangelo alleged in court documents that his wife had attempted to poison him through her cooking and had hired an individual to harm him. Police applied for an apprehended violence order for his protection, which bars Janelle from contacting him directly and from assaulting, threatening, or damaging his property. Janelle is not facing criminal charges related to these allegations.
In a separate development in May, social media posts emerged showing Evangelo with psychic Melanie Obeid, whom he referred to as his 'queen.' Obeid, however, told the Daily Mail that she was married to her wife and that her relationship with Evangelo was platonic.