Suzi Taylor, Ali Ebrahimi facing deprivation of liberty, assault charges

A man has claimed he was tied up and assaulted by Suzi Taylor and her flatmate when he went to the former Block star’s inner Brisbane unit for sex.

Former reality television contestant Suzi Taylor, working as an escort, allegedly had a flatmate tie up a male client and both assaulted him to force him to pay her hundreds of dollars, a court has been told.

David Butler told Brisbane District Court how after he went to a New Farm unit to meet an escort he knew as Katie, for half an hour of sex, he was tied up for hours, punched and kicked.

Crown prosecutor Ben Jackson told the Brisbane District Court jury Katie was Suellen Jan Taylor.

Suzi Taylor has pleaded not guilty to deprivation of liberty, assault, extortion and fraud-related charges.

Taylor and Ali Ebrahimi today pleaded not guilty to charges of deprivation of liberty, assault occasioning bodily harm in company, extortion, fraud and attempted fraud.

The offences were allegedly committed on October 30, 2019, at a New Farm unit.

Mr Butler, 34, told the court of text exchanges with escort Katie, prior to him going to the Bowen Terrace unit.

“Babe can u wear something tight and black, with stockings & high heals (sic),” Mr Butler wrote in one text shown to the court.

He said after he and Katie drank champagne and red wine on the unit balcony for a few hours she very forcefully told him: “Come to the bedroom” and they began kissing and touching.

Mr Butler said after Katie became topless she said to him: “If you want this to continue you’ve got to pay me some money”.

Mr Butler said when he refused, Katie got angry and called out “Ali he’s got no money”.

He said two men came into the room yelling at him for money, and one, whom the Crown alleges was Ebrahimi, grabbed him by the throat, dragging him to the kitchen.

David Butler outside the District Court in Brisbane. Mr Butler gave evidence in the trial of former The Block contestant Suzi Taylor and her co-accused Ali Ebrahami who are on trial for the alleged extortion, deprivation of liberty, attempted robbery and defrauding of Mr Butler who met Ms Taylor on Tinder. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

“I tried to resist and get out of it. He was stronger than me,” Mr Butler said.

“ … When I started resisting he was punching me and kicking me.”

Mr Butler said his wrists were then tied tightly behind his back with a cord by the male.

He said he cried out “I’m broke, I’m broke”, although he had $250 in his wallet.

Mr Butler said Ali then began punching and kicking him while he was on the ground and “Katie” also punched and kicked him soon after he was tied up.

He said Ali demanded his phone PIN and banking app PIN numbers and Katie took photos of his driver’s licence and his cards from his wallet.

He said Ali told him he was going to kill him if he did not give him his bank account PIN, so he provided the number.

Suzi Taylor’s co-accused Ali Ebrahimi outside court in Brisbane. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

Mr Butler said eventually the pair were able to get $950 transferred from his account, after he had been tied up for hours.

He said at one point he tried to escape and screamed as he ran towards a door, but he was pulled back by Ali and assaulted again.

In his Crown opening, prosecutor Ben Jackson said things went “off the rails” after Taylor allegedly told Mr Butler he had to pay her $500.

He said the Crown alleged Taylor procured, arranged or encouraged Ebrahimi to tie up Mr Butler and use violence, in order to get money she believed she was owed.

Mr Jackson said the alleged threat of harm had a real effect on Mr Butler, whom the court heard was eventually untied and allowed to go home.

He said apart from the $950 allegedly taken from Mr Butler’s bank account, $250 also was taken from his wallet before it was returned to him.

Mr Butler said he felt “horrified, scared and traumatised” during the hours-long ordeal, and soiled his pants after Ali refused his request to go to the bathroom.

Mr Butler said when Ali returned to the unit after going away from the unit with his bank card, Ali gave him his wallet, cards and phone back and pushed him out the door.

He said Ali told him not to go to the cops and said “I’ll be following you. If not, you’ll be dead”.

David Butler returns to the District Court in Brisbane. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

Mr Butler said after his release he walked to Fortitude Valley police station.

The court heard Ebrahimi was seen on CCTV using a card to withdraw money at New Farm IGA and Mr Butler later discovered $950 had been removed from his bank account.

Mr Butler told the court he first made contact with Katie via Scarlet Blue, an online site that advertises sexual services in exchange for money.

He claimed he could only see her body, not her face, on the online ads.

Under cross-examination by Taylor’s counsel, James Benjamin, Mr Butler admitted that he had initially told police that he had been in contact with Katie, before the alleged assaults, on dating sites Tinder and Plenty of Fish.

He agreed under cross examination that it was not true.

He also admitted when he was asked, at a committal hearing last year, if the contact with Katie was a prostitution arrangement, he said: “Absolutely not”.

Mr Jackson told the jury Taylor was not on trial for providing an escort service.

He said in the lead up to the alleged assaults and extortion, Ebrahimi texted Taylor: “It’s been 30 minutes, confirm. Get paid if you haven’t.”

He said in another text Ebrahimi said “He needs to pay, f... this” and later texted: “Three hours, stay on top of the payments. Business is not being too nice, honey”.

The four-day trial is continuing.