NRL legend Wendell Sailor charged with assaults, slapped with AVO

Months after quitting radio, the life of ex-NRL star Wendell Sailor’s has hit some turbulence, with the dual international facing assault and intimidation charges, and hit with an AVO.

The manager of an inner-city bar says NRL legend Wendell Sailor chest bumped his shoulder, had a chest-to-chest argument with a patron and yelled “Do you know who I am?” during a drunken rampage on Wednesday night.

Jack Butcher, the manager of Pappy’s Bar, has described the moments before police charged the Brisbane Broncos premiership winner with five offences after a four hour drinking session ended with terrified staff calling police when Sailor refused to leave about 11pm.

“He couldn’t even put a full sentence together,” Mr Butcher said. “One of my colleagues was hiding because she was petrified.”

Police took the 50-year-old former league star to Day St Police Station where they charged him with five offences, including two counts of common assault.

The code-hopping star, who played 37 matches for the Wallabies, was also charged with offensive behaviour, intimidating a person with intent to cause fear and failing to leave a licenced venue when directed.

Wendell Sailor in the Sydney bar. Photo: Fox Sports

Wendell Sailor is facing five charges. Picture: Richard Dobson

When contacted, Sailor told The Daily Telegraph “Nothing happened, mate. Nothing happened” before hanging up.

Sailor’s life has taken a turn for the worse after he quit his radio career with Triple M in July.

It can also be revealed that police have taken out an apprehended violence order against him to protect a woman from following a separate incident that occurred within the last week.

Mr Butcher has given a statement to police detailing his version of the incident inside Pappy’s.

Sailor recently appeared alongside a host of Australian sports stars in an advertisement for Kia. Picture: Supplied

According to Mr Butcher, Sailor arrived after 7pm and that staff had no recollection of serving him because he was drinking alcohol bought by other people.

“He was trying to start conversations with everyone,” Mr Butcher said.

The bar manager said about 11pm he “heard an alarming noise” from the wife of a couple that Sailor had been speaking to earlier.

“I looked out the window and saw the husband and Wendell chest-to-chest and I rushed downstairs and by the time I got down there the couple (had) walked away,” Mr Butcher said.

“Wendell started walking towards them and I told him to move on,” he said.

Sailor made the big money jump to rugby union in 2002. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Mr Butcher said Sailor “started getting aggressive” when he told him to leave a second time.

“He got in my face and was talking and spitting (but not on purpose),” he said. “I wiped my face and he reached out, pushed my face and smeared the spit into my hair and face.”

When he threatened to call the police, Mr Butcher said Sailor responded “Call the f--ken police” and “What are the cops gonna do?”

Mr Butcher said Sailor continued to yell “Do you know who I am?”, “You’re f--ken done”, and “You’re kicking me out because I’m black. You’re kicking me out cause I’m Aboriginal”.

Sailor did not answer calls to respond to the allegations.

Sailor returned to the Dragons in 2008.

“(Sailor) followed me up the stairs and started bashing his chest into the side of my shoulder,” Mr Butcher said.

“If I wasn’t holding on I would’ve fallen on the stairs,” he said. “He did it about three times while insulting me.

“He was telling me ‘You’re f--ken done’ repeatedly,” he said.

Mr Butcher said he went behind the bar and used his phone to call police and that the bar’s “regulars” tried “to protect us from him”.

Police arrived about five minutes later.

“One of the officers told him to come outside and he was refusing to leave,” Mr Butcher said. “He only left when they threatened to restrain him.”

Police granted Sailor conditional bail to appear in the Downing Centre Local Court on November 28.

The AVO matter will appear in the same court on Wednesday.