Jake Nicholas Mandalis, 28, of Cleveland was sentenced to four-month community jail term

A bayside man has blamed a bad trip on illicit drugs for his “brazen and weird” assault on an unsuspecting trolley collector that was so serious it earned a community prison sentence.

A man who donned a bandana to steal a trolley collector’s AirPod headphones before assaulting him while high on hallucinogens will spend his jail term in the community.

Jake Nicholas Mandalis, 28, of Cleveland was sentenced to a four-month intensive corrections order to be served in the community for his “brazen and weird” assault which was captured on CCTV.

Mandalis pleaded guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm, common assault and stealing after a charge of robbery was downgraded.

The court heard Mandalis on November 18, 2021 at around 6.55pm followed a trolley collector into a Cleveland shopping centre, covered his face with a bandana and removed the trolley collector’s AirPod.

A police prosecutor said the unsuspecting victim thought at first it was a friend playing a trick on him until he noted Mandalis’ threatening behaviour.

According to police, the defendant asked his victim what he was listening to before threatening him by stating: “Come outside; I’ll f****’n’ kill you”.

Another shopping centre employee who witnessed the event stepped in front of Mandalis to keep him away from the man and was pushed in the chest, before Mandalis let loose with his fists.

The defendant twice punched the trolley collector in the face, leaving the man with bruising, the court heard.

The court observed CCTV footage of the event which showed Mandalis pushing over a shop sign and “cheering” with his hands in the air while he ran out of the centre.

Jake Nicholas Mandalis, 28, leaves Cleveland Magistrates Court. Picture: Marcel Baum.

The defendant was busted by police the next day on November 19, 2021 still wearing the same clothes as captured on the security footage.

It came on the back of a criminal history “littered” with public nuisance offences, a police prosecutor said.

Police further noted the defendant was in the process of completing an order of unpaid community service for his most recent public nuisance offence at the time of the assaults.

“It (the assault) is clearly unprovoked,” a police prosecutor said.

Defence solicitor Katelyn Sherrin said her client, who suffers from mental health issues, had taken a hallucinogen on the day of the offence and had spent eight days in police lockup after his arrest.

Ms Sherrin further submitted the injuries suffered by the trolley collector were toward the “lower end of the assault occasioning bodily harm scale”.

Mandalis had grown up in foster care, had acquired certificates in disability work and worked as a pool builder before accruing his first criminal history two years ago while abusing illegal drugs, the court heard.

The defendant’s attempt to explain his behaviour as influenced by illicit drugs won little favour from the bench.

“I get heartily sick when people come in here and complain about mental health while taking illegal drugs,” magistrate Deborah Vasta.

“You saw the footage yourself; how brazen and weird your behaviour was.”

Mandalis was further sentenced to two years’ probation and ordered to pay his victim $800 in restitution.

A conviction was recorded.