Inside the high-flying life of diabetic driver whose car ploughed into Daylesford pub beer garden killing five people: Wealthy real estate tycoon and artist once complained to council about road safety

A man accused of killing five people after his car rammed into a pub beer garden is a wealthy artist and property magnate who once complained to his council about road safety.

Bill Swale, 66, a diabetic, is accused of ignoring repeated warnings to treat his low glucose levels for more than 50 minutes before his car plowed into families outside the Royal Daylesford Hotel on November 5.

It can be revealed that Swale and his wife, Thea, have been buying and selling multi-million dollar properties for years.

In November they sold a house titled Tower House in Kyneton for an estimated $3 million, and several years earlier they sold another $3 million-plus property called Grayton House in picturesque Woodend – both northwest of Melbourne.

Swale appeared on Channel 7 reality show A Moveable Feast in 2017, where he showed the Grayton estate to radio presenter Ross Stevenson and co-presenter Kate Stevenson.

In an article published in real estate publication Domain in March, Swale's wife boasted that the millions of properties they lived in were always temporary.

“As much as I love living here, the project is complete and I am a project-driven person,” she told the publication.

At the end of the Grayton sale, the couple posed in a grainy image with their dog 'Rupert' outside the property.

Swale has been a member of the Cobaw Sporting Club – a shooting club from the Macedon Ranges where hunters undertake escapes similar to those of British gentlemen.

Images on social media show members arriving at hunts in limousines and posing with dead birds while dressed in the finest British hunting gear.

But now Swale is behind bars, a world apart from the posh surroundings he has become accustomed to.

On Monday, he was charged with five counts of driving causing death, two counts of negligently causing serious injury and seven counts of reckless conduct endangering life.

Ny Breaking Australia can also reveal Swale and his wife were part of a 'panel' of so-called benefactors who tried to stop the development of a Macedon Ranges work depot in 2006 over road safety concerns.

The proposed facility on Kronks Lane was just steps away from where the Swales would purchase Grayton House years later.

A report on the proposed development found the couple were among just over 100 residents who had opposed the planned depot.

The report noted one of the main concerns of Swale and its neighbors regarding road safety in the area.

“One of the petitioners' primary concerns was the issue of vehicular and pedestrian safety,” the document said.

'The panel was disappointed that Council was not in a position to adequately outline the process it would undertake to ensure that safety measures were paramount in assessing what is in principle an integrated facility combining the various proposed functions.'

As police continue to investigate road safety issues linked to the Daylesford beer garden, the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Monday heard detectives describe what allegedly took place.

Pratibha Sharma, 44, her daughter Anvi, 9, partner Jatin Kumar, 30, their friend Vivek Bhatia, 38, and his son Vihaan, 11, all died when Swale's vehicle crashed into the pub after he suffered a diabetes attack.

Sergeant Peter Romanis told the court Swale had been returning from a clay shooting tournament in Clunes when he stopped in Daylesford.

The artist, who was diagnosed with diabetes in 1994, scanned his blood glucose levels at 5.17pm which returned a low reading and a minute later an alarm sounded telling him to check his levels.

CCTV footage showed him entering a restaurant opposite the pub a few minutes later and asking for a table, but returning to his car as none was available.

Swale was then seen on CCTV at 5.42pm driving his car through the area before it crashed into pub patrons at around 6pm.

Mr Romanis said emergency workers found the 66-year-old in his car sweaty, hot and clammy and unable to communicate effectively.

Swale's lawyer Martin Amad said his client often checked his glucose levels and alerted the informant to the possibility that Swale was already in the middle of a medical episode after being alerted by his app, preventing him from recognizing the alert.

“This is fair and square, a medical episode and whether he knew it or not,” Mr Amad told the court.

Swale had been approved for a conditional driver's license for two years in the months before the crash, with a medical report provided to VicRoads stating his condition was well under control.

Mrs Swale declined to comment on her husband when contacted by Ny Breaking Australia on Tuesday.

Swale was remanded in custody until his bail hearing on Friday.