Zacharias Giatras granted bail over Rockdale crash

A 19-year-old apprentice plumber who was charged over a crash in Sydney’s south which left one man in critical condition has been granted bail. Here’s the latest from court.

Police have charged 19-year-old Zacharias Giatras over the incident. Picture: Tom Parrish

A 19-year-old plumbing apprentice charged after a crash in Sydney’s south last night which left one man in a critical condition has been granted bail.

Rockdale resident Zacharias Giatras, 19, faced Parramatta Local Court on Saturday, after he was charged with aggravated dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, causing bodily harm by misconduct, in charge of motor vehicle and driving with high range PCA following the crash.

At about 9.50pm on Friday night, emergency services responded to reports of a crash on Tyrrell St, Rockdale, and found a parked Toyota Corolla with significant damage.

Police found three 19-year-old men at the scene, with one trapped inside the vehicle. NSW Ambulance treated two passengers and took both to St George Hosptial, where one of the men remains in a critical condition.

The incident occurred on Friday night.

The alleged driver, Giatras, was breath tested by police and allegedly returned a positive result, before he was taken to Kogarah Police Station for a secondary test which came back with a reading of 0.203.

Paramedics treated two men at the scene before rushing them to hospital. Picture: Tom Parrish

On Saturday, the court heard from the police prosecutor that Giatras, who has a “traffic record and criminal history” had initially denied to police that he “was the driver of this vehicle”.

“The defendant made comments to police about his driving behaviours admitting he often speeds and drifts,” the police prosecutor said.

However, while Giatras’s lawyer agreed that “alcohol is the clear main factor in the offending behaviour”, he had no “criminal convictions on his criminal history”.

The matter was heard before Parramatta Local Court on Saturday April 19 2025.

Magistrate Ian Guy labelled the incident as “catastrophic”, especially as “one person could lose their life” due to their injuries.

However, Mr Guy granted the apprentice plumber bail under strict conditions such as to not enter any licensed premises, not to drink alcohol or take drugs unless prescribed by a doctor and present himself at the front door for a drug and alcohol test if told by police.

No pleas have been entered yet and Giatras will face Sutherland Local Court on May 2.