Greystanes: Brandon Peni, John Aoun plead guilty to doing burnouts before wedding

Two western Sydney men have learnt the hard way that burning rubber and smoke are not the best way to start their mate’s wedding celebrations.

Two men who kicked off wedding celebrations by doing burnouts outside a groom’s house at Greystanes in September have been sentenced over the offence, which narrowly avoided ploughing into a crowd of onlookers cheering them on while they showed off.

Brandon Misipati Peni leaves court.

Wedding guests capture the ruckus.

At Parramatta Local Court on Tuesday, Brandon Misipati Peni, 27, and John Aoun, 36, pleaded guilty to the burnouts at Beechwood Ave on September 20 about 1pm, when they ripped up the street in their silver Holden Commodores.

Peni, of Fairfield, was driving an unregistered car with duct tape over the numberplates while Aoun followed him while a large throng of onlookers filmed them.

Peni continued the burnout and doughnuts while accelerating up the street as the smoke blared from the tyres.

But the “sheer act of stupidity’’ was cut short when Peni’s back left tyre deflated and the right rear wheel burst.

According to court documents, Peni drove off but Aoun drove into the “street burnout pad” and accelerated harshly, emitting a plume of smoke, while the crowd continued cheering.

Before he got into another car with the wedding party, Aoun drove his car to Hewitt Ave, removed the numberplates and parked the car with the blown rear tyres.

A man documents the damage the burnouts caused.

The reckless drivers had the attention of many wedding guests.

When police approached Peni, he denied doing the burnouts in the Holden, which had an intercooler to turbo charge it, and a registration which expired 12 days earlier.

Police seized the car.

At court, Aoun, of Guildford, was not represented and pleaded guilty after being charged with prolong sustained loss of traction.

He was convicted, ordered to pay a $1000 fine and was disqualified from driving for four months from September.

Magistrate Tim Keady handed Peni the same sentence.

Peni’s lawyer told the court the security industry worker, who had undertaken a traffic offenders program since the offence, regretted showing off and the sheer act of stupidity “which put the community at risk’’.

Magistrate Keady told Peni his “extremely dangerous’’ actions could have been fatal.

“It’s all rather pathetic, isn’t it, because there’s no crowd here to cheer you on and you’ve got to account for something stupid,’’ he said.

“I don’t know if your self esteem is so poor that that’s what you need to keep going. This could have turned out very badly.

“This was not spontaneous. You planned this.

“I hope you’re feeling awkward because you ought to.’’
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