Roosters star Shaun Kenny-Dowall pleads not guilty to assaulting former partner Jessica Peris
SHAUN Kenny-Dowall faced court yesterday accused of repeatedly assaulting, stalking and smashing the mobile phone of his former partner Jessica Peris.
NSW
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ROOSTERS player Shaun Kenny-Dowall yesterday pleaded not guilty to accusations he repeatedly assaulted and stalked his former girlfriend Jessica Peris.
The 27-year-old New Zealand international faced Waverley Court on charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and six counts of common assault.
He was also charged with stalking, harassment and destroying property, with the alleged offences occurring between October 10 last year and June 24.
Peris, a sprinter and daughter of Olympic gold medal-winner-turned-Labor senator Nova Peris, sought an apprehended violence order against Kenny-Dowall on July 16, with the league star being charged at Maroubra Police Station two days later.
Kenny-Dowall did not speak to media yesterday as he left court and climbed into a waiting 4WD.
Court documents show he is alleged to have assaulted Peris at Coogee between 4pm and 9.30pm on October 10 last year.
On the same occasion he is also charged with destroying or damaging property to the value of $2000, listed as Peris’s mobile phone.
The common assault offences are alleged to have occurred in Maroubra, where Kenny-Dowall lives, between February 26 and June 21. The New Zealand national is also alleged to have used a carriage service to menace Peris between 6pm and 6.30pm on May 16.
The stalking charges — which police allege caused Jessica Peris to fear physical or mental harm — took place at Maroubra on June 24. A second charge of destroying property, again Peris’s phone, allegedly occurred on June 25.
Kenny-Dowall and Peris were in a de facto relationship for more than two years but split three weeks before the allegations surfaced.
Kenny-Dowall was hospitalised a fortnight ago amid concerns about his mental health. The case returns to court on September 17.
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