Australian business tycoon Alan Bond died today after complications from open heart surgery. He was 77.

Following open heart surgery to repair and replace heart valves, leading to complications, Bond was placed in an induced coma. The family released a statement outside the Perth hospital where Bond died in intensive care following his operation on Tuesday.

His son John said, "His body finally gave out after heroic efforts of everyone involved here at the intensive care unit at Fiona Stanley Hospital [...] He never regained consciousness after his surgery on Tuesday."

In the 1980s Bond was one of the richest men in Australia; in 1992 he declared bankruptcy. In 1997 he was convicted and jailed for his involvement in an AU$1.2 billion fraud case. Bond was released in 2000.

In 2008 Australian magazine Business Review Weekly estimated Bond was worth AU$265 million.

Bond leaves behind three children and eight grandchildren.

Source: Wikinews