Hany ‘Harry’ Bebawy delays case over sexual assault allegations in Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court
An Elwood physio accused of sexually assaulting a patient has been slammed by a magistrate for an “unsatisfactory” request to delay his case, after being allowed to return to limited practice.
South East
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A Melbourne physio who allegedly sexually assaulted a female patient has been slammed over an “unsatisfactory” reason for delaying his case.
Hany “Harry” Bebawy, 45, fronted the Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court on October 29, facing two charges of sexual assault, after a patient reported him to the police.
In court documents dating back to November 2022, police alleged Mr Bebawy “sexually touched (the patient’s) nipples without consent” and “sexually touched her outer labia without consent”.
On Tuesday, the court heard Mr Bebawy’s legal team ask for a further adjournment, after a change of representation in August left lawyers “not in a position to agitate a legal argument”.
Lawyer Giselle Nehma told the court there had been issues with funding Mr Bebawy’s legal team.
“We haven’t been dragging our feet,” she said.
“We’ve been doing our best with very limited resources.”
Magistrate Robert Stary said it was an “unsatisfactory” reason to delay the matter.
“He elected to change practitioners, that is a matter entirely for him,” he said.
“The court doesn’t operate at the convenience of council.
“When a complainant has been subjected to an alleged assault she is now suffering the ordeal of the wait for the matter to be dealt with.”
Mr Bebawy was suspended by the Physiotherapy Board of Australia in April after he was charged.
He has denied the allegations and fought the suspension in VCAT, where he was allowed to return to practice with the condition that he not “have contact with any female patients”.
Mr Bebawy runs three clinics across the city – in Elwood, Elsternwick and Coburg.
Tuesday’s matter was not the first delay in proceedings.
In July, his previous legal team raised concerns about the “admissibility” of prosecution evidence and sought the alleged victim’s medical records.
Mr Stary warned Mr Bebawy that no further adjournments would be granted.
“I’m not going to countenance another adjournment,” he said.
“Address your defence team and make sure they’re properly resourced – you can’t come to court without funds.
“If it’s necessary (on the next date) you’ll need to appear unrepresented – I’m not going to adjourn it any further.”
Mr Bebawy will return to the Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court on February 17, 2025 for the continuation of his matter.
