The son of a reformed bank robber who died at the weekend says his father's bank accounts have been locked, leaving him and his older brother to pay for the funeral.
Russell Manser, 56, was a convicted criminal who spent 23 years in prisons around Australia, until he turned his life around and started the organisation 'Voice of a Survivor' to help victims of abuse.
He died in his luxury King Street Wharf apartment in Sydney on Saturday night.
The cause of death is yet to be made public, but there were no suspicious circumstances and a report was prepared for the coroner.
On Tuesday, his youngest son Bayley Manser launched a fundraiser to 'give dad the send off that he deserves and would want'.
He wrote: 'The last thing we thought we'd be doing anytime soon is making a Go Fund Me page for our old man Russell Manser's funeral.'
'Dad's accounts have been frozen for now which has made life a little bit difficult for us boys to get the ball rolling for this funeral financially.'
Manser used social media to talk about the sexual abuse he endured as a teenager in prison, to encourage others to rise above their circumstances, and to weigh in on high-profile criminal cases.
Russell Manser is pictured with his youngest son, Bayley Manser
Pictured: Russell Manser at a designer clothes store in Melbourne
He had about 300,000 followers across TikTok and Instagram when he died and would often speak to his audience from his harbourside home, or while leaning against the bonnet of his black Mercedes Benz.
Bayley wrote: 'Many of you have been asking us if there is anything you can do and the main priority for us at the moment is giving dad the send off that he deserves and would want.'
'If there is anything you can spare towards dad's funeral and wake our family would be very grateful for.
'We appreciate you all.'
The fundraiser garnered about $15,000 within the first hour.
Manser first spoke up about his abuse during the Royal Commission Into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse - he was in jail at the time, but he contacted lawyers about the violence he had suffered.
In doing so, he was able to shed the shame and guilt he held for 30 years and decided to help others do the same thing.
He started a private company called Voice of a Survivor to advocate for victims and helped a lot of people who suffered institutional abuse get compensation.
Russell Manser (pictured at Sydney Harbour) said he never thought he would end up in a penthouse in Sydney
Russell Manser would often film videos leaning against the bonnet of a black Mercedes Benz
Manser had a large stake in that company, until it went into administration last July and was replaced with a new company called Warriors Advocacy.
He also ran a podcast called The Stick Up where he would interview people who had difficult life experiences.
Manser could often be seen on social media standing in front of a luxury car, inside his waterfront unit, at Bondi Beach, the gym, or by Sydney Harbour.
There were multiple videos where he would describe the degrading way prison guards would speak to him, telling him that he would land back behind bars and would amount to nothing.
In one TikTok video last year, Manser stood in front of the Harbour Bridge while saying never thought he would get out of Mount Druitt, the western Sydney suburb where he grew up.
'We never believed we would never make it here - sitting at a penthouse, at a pier in Sydney, at the harbour, and life is so f***ing good,' he said.
Pictured: Russell Manser leaning against a luxury vehicle in a social media video
'You know why? Because I dared to dream. I dared to believe that I was more than this and, mate, life is so good.'
He captioned the clip: 'From the s**thouse (prison cell) to the penthouse.'
In another video filmed at around the same time, Manser made another video with the caption 'to all those prison officers who said I wouldn't amount to much (I know you are watching)'.
He was standing by the water at Sydney Harbour and asked his former guards, 'where are you eating breakfast?' and laughed.'
Manser's oldest son, Ky Manser, opened up on Sunday about his father's death, saying he 'can't explain the pain' he's going through.
'RIP dad till we meet again mate,' he captioned a candid selfie of him with his father. 'I've just lost my best friend...and I'm trying to stay strong for my little brother,' he wrote on Instagram.
'I'm sorry I haven't been able to get back to anyone, I've been spending time with my family and trying to actually accept this with myself [at the moment].'
