Delusional Jamie Bogovic torches dad’s house after family tragedy

Entrenched psychotic symptoms triggered a former boxing champ — who once fought Anthony Mundine and was mentored by Jeff Fenech — to burn down his father’s Narre Warren house.

Former boxing champ Jamie Bogovic torched his father’s house and belted two prison officers as a result of his entrenched paranoid beliefs.

A paranoid former boxing champ who burned down his father’s house belted two prison officers he believed were poisoning his food as part of a conspiracy.

The County Court heard on Monday that after failing to revive his boxing career, Jamie Bogovic took to ice and he started to experience paranoid beliefs such as being sexually abused.

Mentored by one of Australia’s greatest fighters in Jeff Fenech, Bogovic was sentenced to 436 days’ imprisonment for arson but has already served that period in custody.

He set fire to his father’s Narre Warren house on the evening of April 22, 2023 while his family was grieving the loss of his elderly grandmother.

After lighting the fire, he was seen running on the street and jumping fences of neighbouring properties.

Roy Levanic at the back of the house that Jamie Bogovic burned down at Narre Warren. Picture: Athos Sirianos

Bogovic ran past firefighters, ripped open a side gate and stated ‘let’s go, hurry up, the house is on fire. Pull the f---ing gate and go in”.

A police officer attempted to reason with Bogovic when advised that he’d be handcuffed, Bogovic stood up and ran away.

Judge Kellie Blair said after breaking his hand while fighting Anthony Mundine in 2011, Bogovic started taking ice, his social circle changed and his mental health got worse.

He moved to Queensland and unsuccessfully attempted to revive his boxing career in 2013 and a fight got cancelled during the Covid lockdown, Judge Blair said.

The court heard that his father tried to encourage him to return to boxing to get his life back on track but delusions such as that of being sexually abused got in the way.

On his assault on two prison officers, the judge said Bogovic believed they were poisoning his food and drinks and that they recruited someone to kill him.

Jamie Bogovic fell into crime after failing to revive his boxing career.

One prison officer suffered a 3cm deep cut to his cheek and required 10 stitches.

The court heard that a prison officer was patting down and releasing Bogovic, who was kept in a high security area, into an exercise yard when the boxer punched him twice to the face.

Other guards intervened and brought the situation under control.

Bogovic was sentenced to 12 months community corrections order for the assault on the prison officers.