A pilot jailed for defrauding Lord of the Rings film-maker Sir Peter Jackson has failed to halt his bankruptcy proceedings, with investigators finding assets including a Ferrari and an airplane.
Eugene John DeMarco, 59, served a prison sentence after being convicted of six counts of fraud while working for a company owned by Jackson and partner Dame Fran Walsh.
The movie mogul was called as a witness during the 2019 trial, where he labelled DeMarco's fraud the "greatest betrayal" he had ever experienced.
DeMarco worked for about a decade for Jackson and Walsh's plane company, The Vintage Aviator Ltd, which specialises in making reproductions of old aircraft.
He was later adjudged bankrupt on July 14, 2021, as a result of being ordered to pay damages and costs of $323,441 to two buyers of a Wellington house he was selling.