A real estate mogul faces up to 10 years behind bars after admitting his role in a deliberately set fire that destroyed a historic waterfront mansion that had sold for $24 million just 10 months earlier.
Steve Nassif, 70, pleaded guilty in Downing Center Local Court on Thursday to damaging property by fire in September 2002, when the inferno destroyed a historic mansion in Northwood, on Sydney’s lower north shore.
He and his co-accused Adams Kipkosgei Bett, 21, were arrested three months later after NSW Police released CCTV footage of the fire and a silver Toyota Hiace van captured on the street.
Nassif pleaded guilty on Thursday, although his lawyer told the court there was no apparent motive.
The Crown prosecutor unsuccessfully applied for Nassif to be detained before sentencing, and he was released on bail, Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Real estate mogul Steve Nassif has admitted his involvement in the mansion fire.
Dozens of firefighters were unable to save the Northwood mansion that was destroyed by fire in September 2022
The mansion burned down 10 months after Sandy Chen Yi Fei, the sister of next-door neighbor and fund manager ‘Owen’ Ouyang Chen, bought it for $24.1 million. The couple is not accused of any crime and no charges have ever been filed against the Chens.
Nassif’s request comes after Lane Cove Town Council previously rejected a request by the Chens to demolish the destroyed remains of the historic mansion.
“Demolition of a heritage object, even a burnt object, should always be the last option,” a summary of the decision states.
Police allege that Nassif took Bett to the mansion on the night of the fire, where Bett used an accelerant to set the house on fire before the couple fled the scene.
Despite the efforts of more than 50 firefighters that night, the home sustained significant damage.
No one was home at the time and no injuries were reported.
Built in 1915, the mansion was one of the oldest properties in Northwood before its devastating demise.
Steve Nassif (pictured with detectives) was arrested at his Blue Mountains estate three months after the mansion fire.
Nassif was arrested in dramatic scenes three months later at his Wentworth Falls estate in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, which had a rose-lined drive lined with luxury sports cars.
Nassif’s matter will return to the District Court next month.
Bett pleaded guilty to intentionally or recklessly damaging property during the overnight fire.
He remains detained and his sentencing is scheduled for June 13.
Before it was destroyed, the mansion built in 1915 was one of the oldest properties in Northwood.
It was one of the largest privately owned parcels of land in Sydney, with a 46m water frontage along the Lane Cove River with stunning views of the CBD and Anzac Bridge.
The sprawling property, with a tennis court and boathouse, was purchased by Mary and Theo Rossi in 1961 until it was sold in November 2021.
Mary, a television pioneer and travel business owner, lived there until she passed away at the age of 95 in 2021, having raised 10 children in the house with her husband.
The Northwood mansion was destroyed by fire just 10 months after being purchased for $24.1 million.
Steve Nassif pleaded guilty to damaging property by arson. Pictured is the house destroyed the morning after the September 2022 fire.