Sydney TikToker Rabih Houchar spared jail time over assault on influencer girlfriend Tara Eslami

Rabih Houchar, who has almost 17,000 TikTok followers under the handle “dior_onma_body”, dragged his former girlfriend around a room by the hair moments before telling her he loved her.

Rabih Houchar, right, narrowly avoided jail time over his violent assault on fellow online creator Tara Eslami, left. Pictures: News Corp/Supplied

A Sydney TikToker was in a “toxic spiral” when he bashed his influencer girlfriend and dragged her around their hotel room by the hair — just moments before telling her “I love you so much”, a court has heard.

Rabih Houchar narrowly avoided jail time this week over his violent assault on fellow online creator Tara Eslami, which occurred inside the Vibe Hotel on the afternoon of June 16 last year.

Houchar, who goes by the handle ‘dior_onma_body’ on TikTok and boasts 16,800 followers, was initially charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm, destroying or damaging property and intimidation.

However, the 26-year-old pleaded guilty solely to the assault charge in a plea deal negotiated between prosecutors and his solicitor Feddy Kak from Abbas Jacobs Lawyers.

The remaining charges were withdrawn.

Rabih Houchar was all smiles outside the Downing Centre Local Court this week. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short

Houchar was sentenced to an eight-month intensive correction order when he fronted Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court this week supported by friends and family.

As part of the community-based order, Houchar must perform 100 hours of unpaid community service work and accept any mental health treatment recommended by authorities.

According to documents tendered to the court, Houchar and Ms Eslami, who is also known as Tara Eve and has more than 23,000 followers across TikTok and Instagram, were in an on-again, off-again relationship for about eight months before the assault.

The court heard the pair went to lunch then returned to the hotel, where an argument broke out after Ms Eslami began messaging a friend whom Houchar did not like.

Houchar eventually apologised and the pair became intimate.

Houchar then told Ms Eslami they could split up and began showing her pictures of other woman on his Snapchat account, leading to a further argument.

Tara Eslami pictured on social media. Photo: Instagram

Ms Eslami was bashed by her former partner, Rabih Houchar. Photo: Instagram

Ms Eslami walked towards the front door of the room but Houchar grabbed her by the arm and manhandled her around the space, preventing her from leaving.

The court heard he grabbed her the shirt, causing it to rip, then took hold of her hair and dragged her onto the floor near the bed.

He then climbed on top of her, pinning her to the ground, and repeatedly punched her in the head with a closed fist, leaving her with a 10cm bump to her forehead, a bleeding lip and dizziness.

According to police, Houchar then began punching himself in the head and said “why are you doing this to me, we can fix this, I love you so much.”

The court heard Ms Eslami made a second attempt to escape the room moments later but Houchar grabbed her again and dragged her back.

She screamed at him “f**k off, please leave me alone, I’m done I don’t ever want to see you again”, however Houchar continued to assault her.

She begged him to stop but Houchar yelled “stop? I’m gonna go to jail”.

The court heard police arrived at the hotel a short time later and arrested Houchar.

He spent two months in custody on remand before being bailed by the NSW Supreme Court on strict conditions which included a prohibition on accessing social media, which had prevented him from earning a living.

Houchar’s TikTok account is currently stripped of all content but the finalisation of his case now paves the way for him to resume that career.

In court, defence barrister Ertunc Ozen SC noted there was no premeditation in Houchar’s actions that day but said he had been under intense pressure and stress at the time from a recent “significant life event”.

“He accepts he was caught in a toxic spiral,” Mr Ozen said.

In sparing Houchar jail time, Magistrate James Gibson found he was remorseful for what he’d done and his behaviour had been “out of character”.