EXCLUSIVE
A home owned by Australian singer Vanessa Amorosi is worrying her wealthy neighbors as they fear her criminal cousin might return there.
Eden Merritt, 34, was on the run from the law after escaping Amorosi’s Narre Warren North cabin, east of Melbourne, earlier this year.
Chron Australia was told heavily armed police entered the pop star’s home earlier this year in the hope of taking Merritt down.
Neighbors claimed that Merritt managed to escape the police net and were warned on the local police Facebook page to keep an eye out for him.
The dangerous criminal was arrested on July 17 and brought before Dandenong Magistrates’ Court where he was convicted of 50 counts and sent to prison for a year.
Amorosi Hut is a dark spot in an otherwise picturesque landscape
Singer Vanessa Amorosis’ house was allegedly used by a wanted criminal
Charges included possession of methylamphetamine and weapons, car theft, larceny, handling stolen goods and committing crimes while in custody for fraud.
At that point, he had already spent 123 days behind bars awaiting sentencing.
Nestled among multimillion-dollar properties overlooking rolling green hills, Amorosi Cabin has become an ugly blot on the otherwise tranquil landscape.
On Thursday, seven battered cars and an abandoned trailer were scattered around the Amorosi home’s property.
The dilapidated house is believed to have been frequented by squatters.
A neighbor claimed authorities placed a switch on the dirt road in hopes of monitoring traffic on the property.
It remains unclear how long Merritt had lived in the house. Both Merritt and the “Absolutely Everybody” singer live there, according to election records.
Singer Vanessa Amorosi’s dilapidated house is littered with vehicles
Victoria Police released a wanted poster about Merritt
Another Amorosi homestead (top left) overlooks the ugly hut
The remote dirt road leading to Amorosi Hut
Amorosi’s cousin Eden Merritt lived in the Narre Warren North home
Chron Australia is not claiming that the Australian star actually lives in the dilapidated shack or that she lived there while Merritt was there.
Nor is it implied that Vanessa Amorosi had any knowledge that Merritt was wanted by the police before, during, or after his stay at the house.
“Cars were constantly coming and going,” said a neighbor. “We don’t know what was going on there, but it was unusual considering where it is.”
Another neighbor described the number of cars visiting the property as “strange”. “You just get used to it…they’re a strange family,” the neighbor said.
The neighbor said the pop star “hasn’t lived there in about 20 years.”
Some neighbors reported other incidents on the property involving police.
“There was an incident maybe a year and a half ago where (a car was stolen) and driven here.
“There were helicopters flying over it.” “I don’t know if they found him, but they searched the paddocks,” said the neighbor.
Amorosi has her mother’s name tattooed on her right shoulder
Vanessa Amorosi performs her power ballad Lessons of Love during Eurovision 2020
On a hill directly above the hut is another house belonging to the Amorosi clan.
This home was the subject of a bitter legal battle between Amorosi and her estranged mother, Joyleen Robinson.
In a Victorian Supreme Court ruling, Amorosi claimed she often did not get what she was owed over a 20-year period.
Instead, the money allegedly either went to Ms. Robinson as a management fee, was distributed to foundations for the benefit of other family members, or was paid out to “unknown persons,” The Age reported in 2021.
Court records do not indicate when the relationship between Amorosi and her mother broke down.
Ms. Robinson later filed a counterclaim denying that she had deprived her daughter of the money and claiming that the singer had violated an agreement they had made regarding the Narre Warren home that Amorosi purchased in 2001 . The case continues.
Vanessa Amorosi poses for photos after receiving the Inspiration Award at the Australian Women in Music Awards in Brisbane last month
Photos posted by Amorosi on social media show that she has the word “Joyleen” tattooed on her shoulder.
Amorosi, now 42 years old, had her big break in 1999 with the release of her debut single “Have a Look”, which achieved gold status in Australia.
The following year she achieved international success with her debut studio album “The Power”.
Amorosi performed at both the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Her performance of “Heroes Live Forever” at the opening ceremony gained international recognition.
But it was their song “Absolutely Everybody” that became the unofficial anthem of the Games and became a huge hit in Australia and many European countries, including Britain and Germany.
Their combined album and single sales exceeded two million worldwide.
Chron Australia reached out to Amorosi’s manager for comment.