[MSN] Australia. Robbers tie up lawyer, ransack office. Mr Maatouk told police the men stole the keys to his black BMW and two valuable pieces hanging on his wall - a signed photo of Peter Brock and a genuine Picasso.

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Robbers tie up lawyer, ransack office

Jonathan Dart and Jordan Baker
January 26, 2008


HE IS a lawyer, a race-car owner and runs home loan and online divorce
businesses.

Peter Maatouk, whose business website claims he does not know the meaning of
the words "give up", was hit on the head and tied up by robbers in his
office on Thursday.

Mr Maatouk, who offered the story to A Current Affair last year when his
wife gave birth to quadruplets, was grabbed by two men as he was leaving his
law office in Liverpool soon after 9pm. One of them - armed with a gun -
grabbed him and hit him on the back of the head. They forced him back into
his office and tied him to a chair.

The men ransacked the office, stealing money and setting fire to documents
and equipment as he sat struggling. Mr Maatouk told police the men stole the
keys to his black BMW and two valuable pieces hanging on his wall - a signed
photo of Peter Brock and a genuine Picasso.

They drove the car to a nearby street and set it alight.

Mr Maatouk managed to escape and put out the office fire, which caused only
minor damage.

Police say the case is unusual: "It's not every day when a solicitor gets
whacked over the head with something, then ransacked and tied up."

Acting Superintendent Sam Courcoulos from Liverpool said police did not know
which documents were burned, or why.

When asked if they were looking at possible intimidation, he said: "We are
looking at all avenues." Police also said it was strange that the car was
destroyed so close to the office.

The men spoke Arabic, police say. Mr Maatouk speaks Arabic and Lebanese.

The State Crime Command's property squad was investigating the value of of
the Picasso, though it did not reveal which piece was stolen.

A spokesperson for the National Gallery of Australia said that the price of
a Picasso varied wildly depending on its size and period - some Picasso
sketches have been sold for as little $15,000, while one of his portraits of
Dora Maar will go to auction at Sotheby's next month for between $14.5
million and $19 million.

Police were also assessing the value of the Brock photo. A picture of a
Holden Commodore signed by Brock was yesterday being auctioned on Ebay for
$20.

Mr Maatouk yesterday told the Herald he was a victim of crime. "That's all
there is to stay. The matter is still under investigation. It's bad
publicity for my law firm, I don't really want to have to talk about it.

"Police know enough, and that's it. It's in the police's hands. What I've
gone through, at the end of yesterday, I just want to get over it a bit.
What I've gone through needs a bit of getting over, if you know what I
mean."

Mr Maatouk is the principal of Maatouks Law Group, and also has a drag car,
registration "VL GOD", an online divorce business and a home loans business.
"Peter does not know the meaning of the words 'give up'," his website says.

He was described as an "inspiration to all businessmen in 2003, when he was
named as a finalist in a business person of the year competition run by a
local newspaper.

After having a development application for extensions to his house delayed,
he declared that he would run for Liverpool mayor at elections later this
year.

A local newspaper also ran a campaign to support Mr Maatouk after he had a
disagreement with A Current Affair. The program gained exclusive rights to
interview Mrs Maatouk after she gave birth to the quadruplets but later told
the Maatouks it was no longer interested in the story. His wife gave birth
to Rebecca, George, Raymond and Natalie in late 2006.

A business owner next to the Maatouk law office, Andrew Toma, said he found
Mr Maatouk to be a "nice guy", but had never spoken to him about his
interest in fine art.

This story was found at:
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/01/25/1201157668448.html