By Brittany Busch and Erin Pearson
“Body-worn camera footage captures the moment billionaire businessman Adrian Portelli was questioned by police after he lost control of his car at a Diggers Rest roundabout.
The video of the December 2020 incident was released on Friday by Sunshine Magistrates’ Court, where the case against Portelli was heard last year. Portelli was found guilty of failing to keep control of his car but cleared of more serious hooning offences earlier this month.
Adrian Portelli escaped a hooning conviction in court earlier this month.
In the footage, Portelli can be seen grinning as Leading Senior Constable Glenn Hutton approaches the driver side window of a grey Mercedes-Benz C-Class C63 coupe with yellow stripes.
“G’day mate. Picked a bad day to do circle work around the roundabout,” Hutton says as Portelli winds down his window.
“Oh, mate, tell me about it,” Portelli replies.
Portelli then gets out of the car and is breathalysed.
The video shows him attempting to wipe rain from the inside of the driver door as he is questioned by police, who sound surprised when the billionaire says he owns two homes and already has a lawyer’s advice to answer questions with “no comment”.
Police alleged they saw the Mercedes perform doughnuts and fishtail before they intercepted Portelli and impounded the car, but Portelli argued he was lost and his GPS was malfunctioning, causing him to drive around the wet roundabout 1½ times.
“In those conditions, you’d have to be a moron to take off traction control,” he told the court earlier this month.
The billionaire was breathalysed before the Mercedes coupe he was driving was impounded.
Magistrate Michael McNamara ruled Portelli did not lose control of the vehicle on purpose.
Portelli was dubbed “Lambo Guy” after he arrived at an auction for The Block reality TV series in 2022 in a yellow Lamborghini. He later made headlines for hoisting his $3 million McLaren 57 floors into his $39 million penthouse in the Melbourne CBD, securing his reputation for being ostentatious.
Portelli returned to The Block the following year to buy three properties in Hampton East. In the 2024 season finale, he outbid rivals on all five homes at a former holiday resort on Phillip Island.
Portelli has been contacted for comment.
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