Lucas Azzopardi: Bondi fitness influencer, Nutrition Station owner sentenced for threatening to record, post intimate photos of woman

An influencer and owner of a Bondi cafe has been sentenced after he threatened to post a woman’s nude pictures on Instagram and leak false stories about her to the media.

A Sydney influencer and owner of Bondi cafe Nutrition Station has narrowly avoided a prison sentence after he threatened to post a woman’s nude pictures on Instagram and leak false stories about her to the media.

Lucas Azzopardi, 29, received a fiery judgment from a magistrate who called the bullying of women on social media as “really ugly, wicked behaviour” as he was sentenced for threatening to record and post intimate images without consent and intimidation.

Documents tendered to Waverley Local Court state Azzopardi had threatened to release private, intimate images of a woman, leak false stories that she was an escort and called her derogatory names.

“The victim states she lives in constant fear the accused will carry out his threats to release the private intimate images of her, and she feels anxious and depressed,” police facts state.

When Azzopardi threatened to post her images, the victim threatened to go to the police.

Azzopardi then Googled the offence, found an American web page saying it was not illegal, and texted a screenshot to the victim.

Lucas Azzopardi.

Threatening to disseminate someone’s intimate images without their consent is a criminal offence in NSW.

In a series of messages the day before, Azzopardi had also repeatedly called the woman a “c**t” and told her he had posted a nude picture of her on his Instagram story.

Azzopardi.

“Go look at my story haha you look good naked for escort services,” Azzopardi texted her.

The victim could not find any evidence he had posted the picture at the time.

Azzopardi pleaded guilty to all three offences through his solicitor Ahmed Dib at Waverley Local Court and the matter was adjourned for sentence several times until it reached the court on July 13.

Mr Dib told the court Azzopardi’s behaviour reflected “the nexus of his mental health and the offending actions,” and suggested his client had a “hero” complex that spurred him toward “impulsive and reckless behaviour.”

The solicitor told the court what amounted to “ridiculous and foolish behaviour” was a consequence of the victim’s mental health issues that led him to react in anger toward the victim.

Azzopardi has a large Instagram following, the court heard. The Bondi man has almost 14,000 followers on Instagram.

Azzopardi submitted a letter to the court that said he “should never have made a person feel the way she felt.”

The Bondi man currently owns and runs his cafe seven days a week and has been seeing a psychologist since April, the court heard.

Magistrate Jennifer Giles told the court actions such as Azzopardi’s threaten to “ruin women.”

The Magistrate said abuse of women online was becoming increasingly prevalent, and the court must provide deterrents to the community.

“Most magistrates have pet offences that they hate and this is mine,” Magistrate Giles told the court. “This kind of stuff ruins women”

“It leaves them open to blackmail and harm – and worse.”

Magistrate Giles convicted Azzopardi of threatening to record and post intimate images without consent and intimidation and sentenced him to a 12 month intensive corrections order.