Joshua John Plozza, 32, granted bail after allegedly assaulting, threatening to kill woman

A former fast-food operator accused of assaulting and repeatedly threatening to kill a woman has been granted bail.

Joshua John Plozza was granted bail at the Geelong Magistrates Court on Thursday.

A former burger business boss accused of assaulting and repeatedly threatening to kill a woman has been granted bail.

Joshua John Plozza, 32, of St Albans Park fronted the Geelong Magistrates Court on Thursday charged with 14 offences, including stalking, assault, recklessly causing injury, making threats to kill and trafficking cocaine.

He owned burger takeaway shop JP’s Drive Thru on Yarra St in central Geelong, which has since closed its doors.

in July. Plozza pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two months in jail for stalking another woman.

Informant Acting Sergeant Ashlee Bull told the court on Thursday that Plozza allegedly physically and verbally abused a woman from October last year to March this year.

The allegations include Plozza telling the woman he would drown her in a dam and sending her multiple messages on Signal, an encrypted messaging service, stating he would end her life.

Sergeant Bull said Plozza also allegedly messaged the woman via Facebook and made multiple threats to seriously hurt her, including “knocking her teeth” and “slapping her so hard she’d never want to open her mouth again”.

Plozza is also accused of grabbing the woman around her neck, holding her against a wall and kneeing her in the ribs.

On June 13 this year, police searched Plozza’s home and seized mobile phones, a notebook with handwritten notes, a clear liquid vial, three clear bags with white powder and a vacuum-sealed bag containing mushrooms.

Sergeant Bull said the white powder was found to be cocaine and weighed 100g.

The court heard the woman felt “sick at the thought” of Plozza being released on bail and believed he was “capable of killing her”.

Sergeant Bull said the mobile devices were yet to be analysed as officers could not access them.

Plozza’s lawyer, Simon Northeast, told the court the charges would be contested as he believed there were inconsistencies and contradictions in the prosecution’s case.

“We will be providing alibi evidence that he couldn’t be there in relation to some of the allegations,” he said.

“We’re keen to get our hands on the complete (phone) conversations because we believe that will exclude him from some of the allegations.”

Mr Northeast told the court Plozza put all his savings into opening JP’s Drive Thru and had lost about $250,000 due to its closure but also owned a BBQ food trailer and had a percentage in a Melbourne hospitality venue.

Prosecutor Senior Constable Kerrie Maloney said Plozza’s alleged behaviour of violence against women was “an ongoing pattern” and he posed an “unacceptable risk”.

“There are no conditions that mitigate that risk,” she said.

Magistrate Simon Guthrie granted Plozza bail with a number of conditions, including a curfew from 9pm to 7am.

“You are a risk because the history (of offending) I’ve heard is of concern to the community,” he said.

The matter will return to court on September 23.

Originally published as Joshua John Plozza, 32, granted bail after allegedly assaulting, threatening to kill woman