‘Lovely soul’: Nicola Teo had only started business weeks before crash with ex-Comanchero
The daughter of leading neurosurgeon Charlie Teo had only struck out on a new business weeks ago before the crash which has left former Comanchero boss Jock Ross fighting for life.
- Teo’s daughter allegedly drove 200m on wrong side
- Milperra Massacre bikie chief Jock Ross hailed a blaze hero
- Inside the private world of John Ibrahim’s girlfriend Sarah Budge
A “deeply shaken up” Nicola Teo had only launched her dog walking and training business in recent weeks before Wednesday’s crash between her 4WD and Jock Ross’s motorbike, which left the ex-Comanchero chief fighting for life.
Sources close to the investigation say Ms Teo, who credits her leading neurosurgeon father for the passion for animals which has led to her business, immediately dialled Triple-0 from her mobile after the 3.30pm incident involving her Toyota 70-Series LandCruiser at Lower MacDonald.
Police are investigating whether Miss Teo was looking at her phone when she allegedly travelled up to 200m on the wrong side of the road.
She allegedly gave police a version of events but declined to be formally interviewed after the crash at Lower McDonald, which left 76-year-old Ross in a critical condition.
She has been charged with dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, not keep left of dividing line and not giving particulars to police.
The effervescent 24-year-old, who posts prolifically on social media about her love of dogs, walks animals every Wednesday in the grounds of Cross Park, a private riverfront country estate in the Hawkesbury River.
“She’s a lovely soul and comes here once a week to walk a group of dogs,” a staff worker said.
“She’s really shaken up by what’s happened.”
A former fashion stylist at Camilla Australia and barmaid at Watson’s Bay Boutique Hotel, Miss Teo had only launched her dog walking and training business in recent weeks.
According to eastsidedogsau’s business Facebook page, on which she features in a yellow bathing suit cuddling a dog, services include “pack walks” around the streets and parks of Sydney.
“Happy pups on their pack walk!” she posted in one photo overlooking the ocean with five canines.
Her business also offers all day adventure hiking and nature walks complete with pick up and drop off.
Eastsidedogs also provides training for pets that need a solo walk or help with a particular behavioural issue, “price depending on severity,” the Facebook page states.
“Understanding dogs isn’t about finding the human in them, it’s about connecting with the animal in you,” she writes.
Her social media accounts are littered with photos of her modified cream LandCruiser with a group of dogs which she captions “there is something about #dogsandtrucks”.
In a newspaper interview last year, Dr Teo credited his mature daughters for grounding him.
“'My daughters have shown me how to be less selfish and self-centred,” he said.
“They have an emotional intelligence that I didn't develop at their age; some would say I still haven't. Women and girls mature decades before men do.”
For those who know the former $25,000-a-year St Catherine’s School for Girls pupil, Miss Teo is a fervent champion of her father’s campaign to raise awareness of brain cancers and often seen at his side at public functions supporting his high-profile work.
Her social media accounts of recent travels to Greece, Amsterdam and corners of Europe are littered with dog snaps and comments espousing her love of animals.
She completed a course on dog behaviour, training and psychology in America several weeks ago writing on her website “two years ago I was blessed with the most incredible opportunity to learn from someone I have idolised for over a decade.
“I have always revered his ability to understand animals and the way he seamlessly passes that knowledge on to humans.
“It was because of him I discovered that dogs are not here to serve us, they aren’t pets, they aren’t toys — they are companions”.
Pro-Palestine speaker’s visa under review after ‘celebration’ remark
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke is reviewing the visa of a US guest speaker who told a pro-Palestine vigil in Western Sydney that October 7 was a cause for “celebration”.
‘So, so devastating’: Mainstay deli shuts after 70 years
The closure of an iconic southwest Sydney deli has prompted its legion of customers to express how the institution – treasured like the Opera House – meant more than prosciutto and panini.