Wisr boss Anthony Nantes had it all – a CEO’s salary, big house and loving wife – but after his mistress threatened to expose him he lost everything. Read the magistrate’s damning verdict as he weeps at court

EXCLUSIVE

The founder of an ASX-listed financial technology company who had a messy love affair with a female employee lost his “wife, home and job” as a result of the scandal, a court has heard.

Former Wisr chief executive Anthony Nantes, 45, was sentenced at Waverley Local Court in Sydney’s eastern suburbs on Monday after pleading guilty to stalking his mistress, 32, in Sydney between December 2022 and March 2023.

The pair met at work and had a secret relationship for two and a half years before threatening to tell his wife if things went sour.

Nantes then bombarded her with messages — including more than 50 emails in one day — and ended up at her home, where he refused to leave, according to court documents.

Nantes bowed his head in court Monday morning as his lawyer filed a request to have the case of the founder of the high-flying start-up handled under the mental health system.

Mr. Nantes’ estranged wife, Cassi, his father and two male friends sat nearby to show their support.

But Magistrate Jacqueline Milledge was unimpressed by the mental health application, which was based on a psychiatric report which found he suffered from panic disorder and substance abuse.

“Really?” she said, visibly surprised by the request. “This is just a terrible incident.”

Referring to the report, the attorney said Nantes told the psychologist he acted the way he did because the female staffer had sent him text messages demanding money.

Ms Milledge asked if the barrister could provide the communications cited, but when he said this was not possible, she questioned why they were noted as a sentencing consideration.

“Right now he’s just saying it happened, but there’s no evidence of that. So I won’t take it into account,” she said.

The lawyer responded: “Basically the claim is that the behavior, while in any case not excused, the written submissions explain what happened and how that affected his mental health.”

Mrs Milledge said: ‘He’s gotten himself into a terrible, terrible mess. Why wouldn’t he feel that way?’

The lawyer argued that Nantes was in a “hypermanic” state at the time of the offense, due to a pre-existing bipolar condition.

But Ms Milledge pointed out that he had continued to ‘function normally’ before the stress of the scandal.

However, the lawyer continued to insist that his mental health be taken into account, given “the loss of his marriage, home, job – things he has no control over.”

But Mrs Milledge disagreed, replying: ‘What do you mean outside his control? He caused it himself. They (those things) are collateral damage.”

The court heard Nantes had a history of illicit drug use, including cocaine, MDMA, cannabis, as well as using benzodiazepines and alcohol to get to sleep.

The report noted that Nantes could not recall an incident when he followed the employee into the street after being disturbed at her home, which he said could have been due to the use of his prescription medications.

The court heard that Nantes also spent three weeks in a rehabilitation center after his arrest and has not used drugs or alcohol since his release (which was one of his bail conditions).

Ms Milledge ultimately appealed the mental health application, arguing that Nantes’ mental health problems did not appear to be a cause but rather a product of his actions.

She also noted that it was a “very, very sparse” treatment plan, which “made no mention of his substance use.”

“He said she was the one who initiated it, but Mr. Nantes was a great performer when the case was started. He could make conscious decisions,” she said.

‘He had been using cannabis, cocaine every few weeks. He used benzodiazepines to control his anxiety. I think that’s his problem. I refuse to do business with him under Article 14.”

However, Mrs Milledge sympathized with the sad situation Nantes found himself in and praised him for his efforts to get his life back on track.

She sentenced him to six months’ imprisonment for good behavior, without a conviction being recorded.

‘I am not sitting here as someone who has come from the holy sphere and condemns you for having an affair. That’s not what I’m here for,” she said.

‘It was a bad decision on your part that had catastrophic consequences. But we are all human and make mistakes. I certainly have. (But) how we deal with it is a benchmark for us.

‘I don’t know what the future holds for you and your family, but I hope it works out well for you. You are someone who made a mistake and you don’t have to pay for it for the rest of your life. You certainly paid a high price for what happened.

“You do everything you can to improve your life, I see it as penance, and I hope others see it that way too.”

After the hearing ended, Nantes was seen hugging his supporters in relief.

He declined to comment outside court.