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Ex-convict-turned-TikTok celebrity Russell Manser owned a multimillion-dollar property portfolio, luxury cars, and a $3 million company… until his business empire collapsed amid a legal dispute and crippling debt. .
Daily Mail Australia can reveal extraordinary details of how Manser, a 56-year-old reformed bank robber, was quietly involved in a high-stakes court battle that partly led to his prisoner defense business falling into administration.
He died on Saturday night and the cause of his death has not yet been made public but there were no suspicious circumstances.
Manser had spent 23 years in various Australian prisons until he turned his life around and became an advocate for victims of institutional abuse.
He was repeatedly raped in a juvenile detention center and then again in an adult prison as a teenager, and launched ‘A Survivor’s Voice’ in 2017 to help abused inmates obtain compensation.
Russell Manser is pictured inside his penthouse overlooking Sydney Harbor
The company went into bankruptcy last year owing approximately $1 million to the tax office, but also closed because a former client filed a civil case for more than $800,000.
Despite the collapse of his company, Manser started a podcast called The Stitch Up and continued to live a life of luxury with high-end vehicles, a penthouse on Sydney Harbor and a farm in northern New South Wales.
A source who kept in touch with Manser until his death couldn’t understand where his money came from, telling Daily Mail Australia: “He lived large and couldn’t understand how podcasts would support that.”
“The Voice of the Survivor died in the ass,” they said.
Russell Manser is pictured with his girlfriend, Liliana Gagic.
failed business and a legal battle
A Survivor’s Voice provided free consultations to victims, offered to prepare a detailed report of their abuse for a fee, and then referred potential compensation claimants to law firms.
The company also charged victims for ongoing support as they navigated the legal process.
Manser addressed allegations that the company had generated business by reaching out to former inmates and cold calling victims during a May 2022 episode of ABC’s Australian Story.
He told the programme: ‘We have been operating for five years.
“It has not been an easy journey. “People have been trying to suggest that we have been doing inappropriate things, which is really hurtful.”
Manser denied allegations that his firm pressured vulnerable survivors of sexual assault to pursue compensation cases in exchange for kickbacks from law firms in a practice known as “claim farming.”
“We don’t have to claim the farm, people approach us,” he told the program.
‘We don’t have to do that. But, you know, I wouldn’t for a second say that we haven’t made any mistakes.
Russell Manser is pictured, left, wearing a Versace T-shirt with Dave Hedgcock (center)
Manser bought a new Jeep Cherokee in 2022 and uploaded a photo for his Facebook followers (pictured)
Manser said the new Jeep was “the fruit of my labor” and encouraged his fans to “work hard”
He also rejected suggestions that The Voice of Survivor collected commissions of several thousand dollars from law firms for referring prisoners to them and explained how the company made money.
“We actually bill for a report and for the support we provide to the survivor,” he said.
The company went into bankruptcy last July after a change in legislation prevented victims from bringing claims against people who had died, making the business model unprofitable.
According to bankruptcy filings, The Voice of a Survivor earned around $3.2 million in fiscal 2022, with debts of around $2.8 million.
The company owed about $1 million to the tax office when it went into liquidation last year, but the company also closed due to an $800,000 civil lawsuit brought by a former client.
According to insolvency documents, the claim arose from allegations that the company was negligent and breached its duty of care.
The matter is being processed before the Federal Court.
Russell Manser was a convicted felon who turned his life around and became an advocate for assault victims.
Manser bought a rare pair of Nike TNs in 2021, worth around $1000 (pictured)
Russell Manser told his Facebook followers that he bought rare Nikes in 2021
luxury life
Manser continued to live his life of luxury long after his company collapsed.
He had around 300,000 social media followers on Instagram and TikTok and frequently addressed his audience while leaning on the hood of one of his high-end cars.
Manser owned a black Mercedes, valued at about $160,000, and a Jeep Cherokee valued at about $80,000, which he purchased in 2022.
“Every once in a while I enjoy the fruits of my labor,” he told his Facebook followers, alongside a photo of the new car wrapped in a red bow.
“Work hard, stay focused and pursue goals.”
In his videos, he assured others that they, too, could live a good life if they “just got off the PlayStation and put down the pipe.”
When not posing with a luxury car, he filmed from his ‘penthouse’ at King Street Wharf, overlooking Sydney Harbour, or from his $2 million farm in northern New South Wales.
Pictured: Manser’s six-hectare property in northern New South Wales, valued at about $2 million
Pictured: Manser’s sprawling property in northern New South Wales
The extensive property covers six hectares with a four-bedroom house, as well as ten paddocks, stables and a dam.
According to insolvency documents, Manser received $218,000 from the company between July 2021 and July 2023.
That amount comprised 18 ‘bonus payments’ from The Voice of a Survivor, worth a total of $45,800, and nine additional payments worth $33,200.
Manser Co Pty Ltd, owned by Manser, also received 77 payments, worth $139,000.
I would also upload photos with weird shoes and designer clothes.
Girlfriend talks about her open relationship.
On Sunday night, his lover Liliana Gagic posted a series of photos of them together on Instagram.
In the caption, she wrote: “Goodbye my lover, until we meet again.”
Gagic told Daily Mail Australia they had an “open relationship.”
“Russell and I had an open relationship,” she said.
‘I’m currently in Europe, so I wasn’t by his side (when he died).
‘Russell was a warrior. Man on a mission. Soul that everyone who ever knew will remember forever. Man of freedom, frequency and vibration that not many humans embody.’
She said he showed “love and compassion toward victims of sexual abuse” and described him as “a man in a million.”
Manser is survived by his two children, Ky and Bayley Manser.