Annette Sharp: Guy Sebastian’s rep takes a hammering at Titus Day trial

Singer Guy Sebastian’s squeaky clean reputation took a hammering at the trial of his former manager Titus Day, Annette Sharp reveals.

Guy Sebastian’s squeaky clean reputation and accountancy acumen took a hammering in the District Court last week when the singer was cross examined under oath in the Crown’s case against his former manager Titus Day.

On Tuesday Sebastian admitted he’d told people he’d “headbutted” – though not intentionally he claimed – a youth he’d chased from outside his Clovelly home in 2012 after the singer’s wife phoned her absent husband and told him the youth had attempted to break into his son’s bedroom via a window.

Defence barrister Dominic Toomey SC repeatedly probed Sebastian: “Mr Sebastian, I’ve asked you if you’ve ever told anyone that you headbutted him?”

Sebastian: “I’ve told people that yeah I knocked him out,’’ the singer said, emitting a laugh, and confirming he had chased the youth when “he started to leg it”, Sebastian’s helmeted head
later making contact with the youth’s face.

Singer Guy Sebastian outside of court. Picture: Richard Dobson

Later in the week the court heard the Australian Idol star had referred to concert goers as “fat older feral women”.

The Voice coach was referring to an audience at a Shane Filan concert in the UK in 2017, where Sebastian agreed to perform as an unpaid support act for the boyband Westlife singer.

“You simply abandoned that tour. You didn’t like the way the tour was going,” Mr Toomey said.

Sebastian concurred: “That was one of the reasons, yes.”

Just two weeks into the five week trial and the singer has made admissions about a number of fraud charges the Crown has brought on Sebastian’s behalf against his former manager Titus Day.

Day has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to all 50 embezzlement charges.

“If there are mistakes I will, I will put my hand up. If that’s a mistake and that’s a charge then obviously I, there’s no desire in me for Mr Day to have a charge for, for a mistake,” Sebastian told the court on Wednesday.

It followed the defence directing Sebastian to a bank statement showing a $111,044 payment to his account by Day’s management company 6 Degrees in 2014.

“One way of avoiding a charge being brought of course is to look carefully at these things before the charge is brought,” the defence counsel said.

Day’s lawyer explained that “for a couple of years at least” – before May 2013 – Day had puzzled over why Sebastian had never received a single royalty payment from Sony Music, with whom he’d had a recording contract.

Talent manager Titus Day. Picture: Richard Dobson

“We have all been scratching our heads for years as to why you have never received a royalty from Sony, and we are considering doing an audit”?” Mr Toomey said, reading an email Day wrote to Sebastian.

“You knew also, didn’t you, that the queries concerning where the Sony royalties were ultimately cleared up by Mr Day’s wife, Courtney, making inquiries herself at Sony?” Mr Toomey continued.

Sebastian: “Yes.”

Mr Toomey went on: “Sony informed Ms Day that in the previous 12 months they’d paid over $100,000 in royalties?”

Sebastian: “Yes.”

Mr Toomey: “It was a pretty big deal wasn’t it? Because Mr Day had been scratching his head for years as to why you weren’t receiving Sony royalties?”

Sebastian: “Yes. I remember reading this but I had – I had no idea until really until this point that there was some kind of issue. I wasn’t aware of any payments that were being made.”

Sebastian’s lack of knowledge about his bank accounts and the management of those accounts by his accountant Dorcas Kemp of George Kemp & Associates repeatedly drew scrutiny from the defence barrister.

At another time during cross examination it was pointed out to Sebastian that he had waited six years to raise a query over the location of his $494,000 payment for performing at four Taylor Swift concerts in 2013. He finally tabled it in his 2020 police complaint regarding Day.

Mr Toomey suggested the $494,000 was spent buying shares in a company called My Medical Records (MMR) at Sebastian’s instruction to avoid paying tax.

“That is possibly the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” Sebastian responded.

“I don’t think about tax. If there’s a question about tax, you’re more than welcome to ask my accountant.”

Guy Sebastian’s best mate Tim Freeburn (below. third from left back row) and Det. David Murphy (third from left front row) in their cricketing days.

Sebastian’s relationship with the arresting officer Det David Murphy of Mascot Police has also been put under the spotlight.

Sebastian admitted that rather than go to local Maroubra Police Station to report the alleged fraud as a regular local resident might, he had held a meeting at his Maroubra house with a police officer after first consulting his best friend Tim Freeburn, co-owner and MD of the Jennifer Hawkins’ backed tequila brand Sesión.

“I said to (Tim) ‘I’m very cautious to just speak to anyone. Do you know any police that are trustworthy?’ And he said ‘There’s a bloke I know that I used to play cricket with … just put it in front of him and he’ll let you know’,” Sebastian said.

The singer, cautioned by the defence to be careful about the answers he gave, denied having also played cricket with arresting officer Murphy and Freeburn at the Sutherland District Cricket Club but admitted he had trained in the nets at the club.

Originally published as Annette Sharp: Guy Sebastian’s rep takes a hammering at Titus Day trial