Arabella Del Busso successfully applies to overturn conviction for stealing $52K
Lingerie model and celebrity boxer Arabella Del Busso appeared in court for the first time since she was charged with stealing $52K from her medical centre employer.
St George Shire Standard
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A former WAG turned celebrity boxer who was found guilty in her absence of stealing more than $52,000 from her medical centre employer has successfully applied to have her convictions overturned.
Arabella Del Busso, 33, had pleaded not guilty to stealing property as a clerk or servant over allegations she stole $52,350 from Rheumatology Specialist Care.
She was sentenced in her absence last month after failing in a bid to have her hearing date annulled due to a lack of legal representation.
Magistrate Hugh Donnelly said in court on Tuesday it was in the “interest of justice” for Del Busso to have the opportunity to defend herself given the seriousness of the charges.
Police allege Del Busso stole the money when she was worked as a receptionist at the clinics – now called Integrated Specialist Medical Care – in Kogarah and Randwick between September 2019 and February 2020.
Police allege Del Busso repeatedly called clinic patients and asked them to bring cash payments because the EFTPOS machine was not working.
An investigation allegedly revealed the EFTPOS machine was working and Del Busso’s bank records allegedly showed thousands of dollars’ worth of cash deposits into her accounts during the period she was employed at the clinic.
Del Busso attempted to have her hearing on February 10 vacated – citing illness – but Magistrate Hugh Donnelly dismissed the application, convicting her of both counts in her absence.
Last month the case was set down for an annulment application.
In court on Tuesday, solicitor Wayne Pasterfield said the case had been delayed multiple times, through no fault of Del Busso, because of administrative errors and Covid delays.
Mr Pasterfield said Del Busso had engaged multiple lawyers at various times but had no money and struggled to get government-assisted legal advice because she lived in another state.
The court previously heard Del Busso could not afford a lawyer for her February hearing because she had not been employed.
“She was out of employment because of various things that had been written about her in the media,” Mr Pasterfield said.
“She’s here today at great expense to come up from Victoria.
“Notwithstanding that she does not have a criminal record.
“She’s always wanted to defend this.”
Police prosecutor Sergeant Martiza Van Heerden said refusing the annulment application was in the interest of “justice”.
“She’s had ample time and opportunity to obtain legal advice,” she said.
“It appears that she didn’t take the matter seriously enough to make those (legal) inquiries.
“She’s had this amount of time to prepare for the trial.”
Magistrate Hugh Donnelly said the charges were very serious and carried a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
“It’s in the interest of justice that she be able to have a hearing to defend herself,” he said.
Mr Donnelly granted the annulment application so the allegations could be defended and a new hearing date was set for October 10.
He noted Del Busso’s reasons for wanting to vacate the hearing had not been adequate because they did not address the cause of her illness and police had made several attempts to serve the brief of evidence on a number of lawyers.
“I am still not convinced that her conduct in the case has been of a high standard,” Mr Donnelly said.
Del Busso’s high profile relationship with NRL player Josh Reynolds was marred with controversy and disintegrated after it was revealed Del Busso had faked a pregnancy and miscarriage with Reynolds.
She later appeared on reality TV show SAS Australia and is now a competitive boxer.
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