Alleged shack-wrecker George Lavrentiadis faces SA court as magistrate told three more people will be charged over the incident
The mystery surrounding a demolished, near century-old shack with a million-dollar view has deepened, with a court hearing three more people will be charged.
Police & Courts
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Three more people will be accused of having unlawfully demolished a near century-old coastal “salmon shack” with million-dollar views, a court has heard.
On Monday, George Lavrentiadis made his first Adelaide Magistrates Court appearance charged with tearing down the Fleurieu shack used by Barry Robertson and his family.
Mr Robertson, who attended court with his solicitor, listened from the public gallery as a prosecutor asked the court for a longer-than-normal adjournment.
“There are three co-accused in this matter, and it’s possible that all four individuals will be joined together on the same court file,” he said.
The names of the three co-accused individuals were not given in court, and no charges have been formally laid against these individuals.
Mr Lavrentiadis, 50, of no fixed address, was arrested in February and charged with two counts of damaging property and two counts of dishonestly taking property without consent.
At the time, SA Police alleged he had demolished a “salmon shack” on the Fleurieu Peninsula’s Heysen Trail in June 2022.
The arrest was based on photographs showing a man, alleged to be Mr Lavrentiadis, present at a neighbouring shack without permission to be there.
A second photograph shows a Nissan Navara, allegedly belonging to Mr Lavrentiadis, parked near that shack with its rear window open and a yellow toolbox handle visible.
The shack, built in 1934, was at the centre of a dispute between Mr Robertson and Florida-based real estate agent Julian Galbraith Johnston.
Mr Robertson asserts he and his family had owned the shack since 1964, while Mr Johnston – who owns a neighbouring $900,000 property – claims it was on Crown land.
Mr Johnston has publicly denied any wrongdoing, has denied having ordered the demolition of the shack, and has not been charged with an offence.
He claims he has been subjected to abusive messages and threats of violence.
On Monday, the prosecutor said investigators were also waiting on “outstanding statements” in relation to the dishonestly taking property charges.
Counsel for Mr Lavrentiadis said their client did not wish to enter pleas to the charges at this stage, and said they had yet to negotiate with prosecutors.
Magistrate Karim Soetratma remanded Mr Lavrentiadis on continuing bail to face court again in September.
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