Assault, drugs, fraud: But this man still got his real estate licence

PHOTO: Paul Pavlovski

Former bankrupt Paul Pavlovski has convictions for assault, drug offences and now fraud, but his criminal past has not prevented the 63-year-old from obtaining an estate agent’s licence and starting a property business with a bikie gang associate.

The decision by the Victorian Business Licensing Authority to grant a licence to Pavlovski reveals probity concerns about oversight of the state’s property industry, which has been damaged by a series of scandals involving rogue agents.

Pavlovski is also currently banned from holding a liquor licence or working in Victoria’s security industry, which raises further questions about the level of co-operation between government agencies and regulators.

Last week, Pavlovski was sentenced to an 18-month community correction order in the County Court, after pleading guilty to two charges of obtaining financial advantage by deception and one count of recklessly dealing in the proceeds of crime.