Daniel Malupo avoids jail over Flamingo Lounge Potts Point brawl
Daniel Malupo says he was just trying to help when he waded into the fray between police and his family. A court has heard his lengthy history of violence suggests otherwise.
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A nightclub employee who said he was trying to “help” by pulling police officers off his cousins who engaged them in a wild brawl outside the Flamingo Lounge is in fact a serial violent offender a court has heard.
Daniel Malupo, 32, of Brighton Le Sands narrowly avoided jail on Wednesday when he appeared in Downing Centre Local Court to be sentenced after pleading guilty to three charges of assault police, one of engaging in security work without a licence and one count of drug possession.
His involvement in the October 2019 melee in Potts Point breached two separate Community Corrections Orders including one made just days before the bloody fist fight, over which three of his family members were also charged.
The Crown told Magistrate Susan McIntyre both of the CCOs involved acts of violence – one for charges of affray and stalk and intimidate and another for a charge of common assault.
“Although the accused was present and asserts himself to be helping police it was quite clear he was not,” the crown prosecutor said.
However Malupo’s lawyer argued his client was suffering from a “conduct disorder” likely caused by a head injury he sustained in 2010.
He pointed out the decade long gap between Malupo’s recent spate of offences and the last time he appeared before a court at age 19.
The lawyer also highlighted that unlike his cousins who threw punches, Malupo’s action were confined to pulling officers off his family members.
“This man was of the belief he was simply trying to break up a fight,” the court heard.
Magistrate McIntyre slammed Malupo when handing down her sentence.
“Mr Malupo, how many opportunities do you want to avoid prison?” she said.
“You have some kind of misguided belief you can be acting in violence towards members of the public because they get in the way of family members or get in your way.
“The prospect of imprisonment looms large and it should.
“How do we maintain the safety of the community? How do we prevent you from doing this again – is it by locking you up?”
Malupo was sentenced to a $1000 fine for engaging in security work without a licence.
For all other charges, he received a 15 month aggregate term of imprisonment to be served in the community via an Intensive Corrections Order.
Malupo must abstain from drugs and alcohol, commit no further offences and enter into a mental health treatment plan.
“I also sentence you to 150 hours of community service in order to give something back by way of your labour for what you have taken from the community in terms of the vast amounts of resources used to deal with your violent outbursts.
“Mr Malupo this is your last chance. If you commit offences, breach the order, don’t co-operate, you don’t come back before the court … If the parole board breaches you it’s up to them if you spend time in jail and based in your record that would be almost certainly on the cards.”