Bikies Toby Elvey and Matthew Rizzo guilty of intentionally causing serious injury

Shocking footage reveals the moment a group of out-of-town bikies unleashed “sheer violence” on a member of the public in a central Geelong bar.

A pair of Bandido bikies who bashed a man during a brawl at a central Geelong bar have won a bid to keep the matter in a lower court.

Toby Elvey, 43, of Pascoe Vale, and Winter Valley man Matthew Rizzo, 30, fronted the Geelong Magistrates Court, having pleaded guilty to charges including intentionally causing serious injury.

Both men are patched members of the Bandidos outlaw motorcycle gang, with Elvey being president of the gang’s Melbourne chapter, and Rizzo Sergeant at Arms of the Ballarat Chapter.

Earlier, a third accused man, Marty Albert, also a patched member of the Bandidos, pleaded guilty to a charge of riotous behaviour and was convicted and fined $1000.

The two victims in the fracas, aged 38 and 42 at the time, were not known to the three bikies and had been sitting in the next booth over in Manhattan Bar on James St just after midnight on October 22 last year.

A screenshot from Manhattan Bar's CCTV, showing Bandido bikies Matthew Rizzo and Toby Elvey brutally assaulting a man. Picture: Magistrates' Court of Victoria.

Albert sparked the attack after words were exchanged over the barrier dividing two booths, by punching and grappling with one of the victims.

The other man attempted to help his friend, but was held back by Elvey and Rizzo before Elvey grabbed him by the hood of his sweater, causing him to lose balance before Rizzo tackled him to the ground.

On the way down the man hit his head, either on a chair or the floor, and was knocked unconscious.

While he was out, Rizzo was on top of him and punched him repeatedly in the head, while Elvey kicked him as other patrons watched on.

A bystander appeared to tell Elvey the victim was not conscious, and Elvey pushed Rizzo off him to stop the attack.

The man suffered multiple nasal and facial fractures and nerve damage causing partial facial paralysis as a result of the attack, and still complained of headaches, pain and dizzy spells to his GP weeks after.

A screenshot from Manhattan Bar's CCTV, showing Bandido bikies Matthew Rizzo and Toby Elvey brutally assaulting a man. Picture: Magistrates' Court of Victoria.

Magistrate Simon Guthrie described what he saw in the CCTV footage as “cruel” and “sheer violence”.

Tuesday’s special mention hearing was held to determine whether a plea hearing should be heard in the Magistrates’ Court, or whether it could be uplifted to the County Court.

An application by Rizzo and Elvey’s lawyer, barrister Carlin Grant, argued the lower court was a suitable jurisdiction, while barrister Redmond Casey, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, opposed.

Mr Grant said that the charges while serious, were “not so serious it cannot proceed in this jurisdiction”.

He said Elvey or Rizzo, at the outset, weren’t looking to escalate the disagreement between the two booths to violence.

“The footage … showed that each of Mr Elvey and Mr Rizzo are holding another person, in an effort to diffuse the situation,” Mr Grant said.

Matthew Rizzo leaving Geelong Magistrates' Court.

He noted the assault was brief, and lacked an aggravating factor in that neither man realised their victim had lost consciousness as they punched and kicked him in the head.

Mr Guthrie asked Mr Grant if they were “splitting hairs”.

Mr Grant also said the pair’s guilty pleas, along with “other material” that will be presented at a plea hearing, helped to demonstrate their remorse, and that it will be submitted both men have good prospects of rehabilitation.

The court heard Rizzo has no prior criminal record, unlike Elvey whose rap sheet includes a conviction for intentionally causing injury from 2017.

In response, Mr Casey argued it was “serious and highly culpable offending”, where the level of violence was high and the short duration merely indicated the ferocity of the attack.

Mr Casey said the Elvey and Rizzo “escalated (the situation) with extreme violence”.

Despite his clean record, Rizzo was the “chief antagonist” and did “most of the damage”, Mr Casey said.

Toby Elvey leaving Geelong Magistrates' Court.

Mr Guthrie noted that while the attack was brief, it did not take much to cause fatal injuries in similar circumstances, and said the assault on the victim was a “cruel and brutal exhibit”.

However, with some “hesitation” and “trepidation”, Mr Guthrie opted to grant the application to keep the matter in the Magistrates’ Court, noting the court could jail the pair for up to five years.

The pair faced up to 20 years in jail if the matter had gone to the County Court.

Elvey and Rizzo will reappear in court on February 18. Their bail was extended.

Originally published as Bikies Toby Elvey and Matthew Rizzo guilty of intentionally causing serious injury