John Balafas: Bondi doctor allegedly sent ‘angry emoji’ to woman after being granted bail
A Bondi doctor – charged with a number of domestic violence offences – is accused of sending an ‘angry face’ emoji to the alleged victim just hours after being granted bail, a court has heard.
Wentworth Courier
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A Bondi doctor – charged with a number of domestic violence offences – is accused of sending an ‘angry face’ emoji to the alleged victim just hours after being granted bail, a court has heard.
John Balafas made a bid for bail for the second time in a fortnight when he appeared via video link at Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday.
The 49-year-old came to the attention of police following an incident between June 25 and 26 at Dover Heights where he allegedly attacked a woman.
He was charged with domestic violence related assault occasioning actual bodily harm, stalk or intimidate, and contravene an apprehended domestic violence order and was granted bail at Waverley Local Court on June 27.
Balafas was slapped with another charge of contravene prohibition or restriction in an apprehended domestic violence order for allegedly sending an angry face emoji to the protected person between 2.30pm and 2.45pm on June 27 – just hours after he was released on bail at Waverley Local Court.
On Wednesday at Downing Centre Local Court, Balafas’ lawyer Mr Hempsall entered not guilty pleas to all charges.
In addressing Balafas’ bail application, the police prosecutor opposed bail due to “unacceptable risks” he may commit further offences and endanger the safety of the complainant.
He told the court the “fresh” charge was by way of sending an “angry emoji … mere hours after being granted bail”.
The prosecutor said Balafas “would have been explained [his] bail conditions in court that day … and he’s gone and [allegedly] sent that angry face emoji … in contravention of the AVO and bail conditions”.
He said the doctor had a complete disregard for any court ordered conditions and the “court couldn’t be satisfied that any bail conditions … no matter how stringent” could deter him from further offences.
The court heard Balafas showed he had a poor compliance with previous orders with the prosecutor pointing to documents tendered to court by Mr Hempsall which indicated the doctor had been placed on a community correction order for “a number of contraventions … that took place over a number of months”.
“He repeatedly [was] in contact with the same complainant, despite the AVO being in place,” the prosecutor said.
He told the court Balafas went as far as to give a walky talky to the complainant “to avoid being detected by police” and to enable him to still contact her.
When asked how he could address the unacceptable risks raised by the prosecution, Mr Hempsall said his client had no prior record before 2021 and noted Balafas’ “emotional, financial and substance abuse” struggles during this time.
However, Mr Hempsall said the complainant was a “willing participant” in the “numerous contravention offences” allegedly committed by his client.
As part of Balafas’ proposed bail conditions, Mr Hempsall said he would “only have one phone” and would agree to showing it to police on request, along with a self-surety of $50,000 on top of $50,000 from his father.
Magistrate Jennifer Atkinson accepted Balafas was unlikely to get a full-time sentence, however, said an intensive correction order was possible if convicted, prompting Mr Hempsall to say the “likelihood of time spent on remand [would] exceed a sentence”.
She ultimately granted Balafas bail, saying she hoped his time on remand was a “wake up call”.
“[Allegedly] sending an emoji when you are told to have no contact, is a problem … it doesn’t matter what the other person is doing, they are protected,” she said.
“Wake up to yourself, because otherwise you’re the one who will be adding to this criminal record.”
The matters will return to the same court on March 7.
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